A Loophole in Destiny
by elocin13
Summary: 2 months after the Arisato twins' fulfillment of their destiny to prevent the Fall, they wish to return to their former lives and reunite with their friends. What if there was a loophole in their destiny? What if there was another way to seal the Nyx?
1. Chapter 1  Wishes

A Loophole in Destiny

A Persona 3 Fanfic

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><p>Author's Notes: Please forgive the inaccuracies and incorrect grammar you find in the story and sorry if the story is not good andor boring.

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><p>Chapter 1: Wishes<p>

"Minato-ni…" Minako called her twin brother as they both stood opposite each other unable to move their bodies. They're standing in front of 2 huge golden doors in a white, empty room.

"Hmmm?" Minato murmured as a response to the younger twin.

"Do you think everybody's doing ok?" Minako asked then Minato replied in a serious tone, "I'd like to think they are." Suddenly, Minako giggled in her position, something that Minato hasn't heard for who knows how long they've been there. The older twin wanted to look at his sister to see if she's alright but as much as he wanted to, he couldn't move his body save for his mouth.

"I think right now, Yukari-chan and Junpei are arguing because of Junpei's perverted ways." Minako said. "Probably" was the only answer that Minato gave his sister.

"Shinjiro-senpai and Aki are probably arguing as well. I'm sure Shinjiro-senpai's lecturing Aki about how he should eat healthier foods and stop taking that protein stuff he takes." Minako continued giggling as she spoke about their friends.

"I think Ken and Koro-chan are watching Featherman Ranger X right now while Fuuka-chan's busy chatting with Natsuki. I wonder what Mitsuru-senpai and Aigis are doing too. I can't think of what they could possibly be doing right now." Minako said, feeling a little down because of this then Minato spoke up. "I'm sure Mitsuru-senpai's busy with things in the Kirijo Group and Aigis is either watching Featherman Ranger X too or watching Junpei and Yukari arguing away."

After Minato's statement, they both briefly smiled and fell silent again. This is how it's been for Minato and Minako since they became the Great Seal, casual talk then silence for a long time. The silence that seemed like forever was broken after a while with a familiar voice, "Do you want to return to your friends?" the voice said.

The Arisato twins gasped as they recognized the voice, "Ryoji!" they said in unison and as if on cue Ryoji appeared from a distance seemingly approaching them with his sad smile.

"Do you want to return to your friends?" He repeated his question as he got closer to them.

"Of course, I miss my friends so much and I'm sure my brother does too, eh Minato-ni?" Minako replied.

"But no matter how much we want to return, we can't because this is our destiny. To be up here, by these doors and prevent Nyx from waking up." Minato said bluntly. Ryoji frowned at Minato's statement and everything became quiet again for a moment.

"So…. I'm glad you visited us again Ryoji-kun." Minako said, smiling a little trying to break the awkward silence and lighten the heavy atmosphere. "You haven't visited us in a while. I was worried you won't come see us again." Minako continued.

"I'm sorry. I've been busy for a while that's why I haven't visited you." Ryoji answered while looking at Minako.

"Busy with what?" Minako asked curiosity can be traced in her voice.

"Different stuff" Ryoji answered as a bright, kind smile appeared on his face and turned to face Minato. "Well? Minako answered my question already, how about you Minato-kun?" He asked the older Arisato.

"I already gave you my answer. I want the same as she does but no matter how much we want that, we can't leave this place." Minato answered him bluntly but Ryoji just kept smiling at Minato and said, "Well I want the same. I want you two to be able to return to your world and to your friends."

Minako corrected him with a smile, "Don't you mean _our_ friends? They're your friends too Ryoji-kun."

"I guess that's true." Ryoji said looking down briefly and looked up at the twins again. "Well, we're not the only ones who wish for you two to return." Ryoji said then continued, "Just listen to all those wishes." The three of them fell silent inside the empty room and suddenly started hearing voices.

The first voice they heard was that of a man. "Hey you two, why did you guys leave? I'm the one who's sick and yet you left this wonderful world ahead of me. This place has gotten so sad after you guys died. I wish you guys were here so I have someone to talk to. You two were the only ones who spent time with me without pitying me." They can hear the man's voice laughing weakly then coughing up a little.

"Minato-ni, isn't that voice Akinari's?" Minako asked her brother and Minato answered her, "Yeah, it is. Akinari…" After a while, another voice found its way to their ears. It was the monk whom they met in Club Escapade, always drunk.

"Tch" they heard him say. "Kids these days aren't careful at all. I told you two to take care of yourselves but you didn't listen to me. Now look at where you ended up, in a grave." Mutatsu paused for a bit then continued, "Remember when I told you the last time we saw each other that I'll go see my wife and son and talk to them? Well I just did and they forgave me. So now, I have a house to come home to. It would have been nice though if you two were there to help me out. You promised after all."

Mutatsu paused for a moment again then spoke again, "My son would've been glad as well to meet you two. He'll have 2 new friends he can hang around with." They heard the monk chuckle a little followed by a sigh. Minako smiled upon hearing the monk's voice and finding out that he finally reunited with his family. Minato let out a little smile as well because of this and soon they heard another voice, this time from a crying little girl.

"Minato-neesan, Manako-neechan… I told you two to wait for me didn't I?" The girl sobbed.

"Maiko…" Minako gasped as they heard the young girl's voice, sobbing.

"It's unfair! You promised that you'll wait for me to come back so we can play again. So why did you leave? You broke your promise!" Maiko continued in between sobs. The Arisato twins and Ryoji just kept silent as they continued to hear Maiko sobbing as she spoke.

"Please… Minato-neesan, Minako-neechan… Come back…" It was the last thing they heard their young friend say before starting to cry harder. It was a long, awkward silence as they heard Maiko cry then, they heard the voice of another of their good friends.

"Come dear! Hurry up! Minato-san and Minako-chan are waiting for us." Though the twins didn't speak, they both thought the same; it was definitely Bunkichi calling on his wife, Mitsuko.

"Almost there dear..." They hear Mitsuko answer with a somewhat tired voice to her husband.

"Hello Minato-san. Hello Minako-chan. How have you two been?" Bunkichi asked as if the twins he were right in front of him.

"It's been a while hasn't it?" Mitsuko said as she tried to catch her breath. "Sorry if we haven't visited you in a while. As you both know, Mitsuko and I are both getting old." The old man chuckled after saying this.

"You've been gone for a while now so you've probably already met our son. I hope he's taking good care of both of you up there." Bunkichi said softly chuckling again.

"We know you are in a good place but it's been lonely again after you left. It felt like we lost 2 important members of our family again." Mitsuko said in a sad tone.

"Come now dear. Let's not make our dear friends sad by being sad." Bunkichi told his wife gently.

"It would be nice to see them again though and spend time with them again." Bunkichi chuckled softly and Mitsuko can be heard agreeing while chuckling a little as well. They were probably remembering the good times they've spent with the Arisato twins. Soon, the voices of Bunkichi and Mitsuko slowly faded like the previous voices as another came through.

"Hurry up Kenji! It would be nice if we got to visit our friends before the sun started to set." The next voice yelled at Minato's friend, Kenji. It was Yuko Nishiwaki, Minato knew for sure.

"Geez Kenji, can't you be any slower?" A third voice added. This time it was Rio Iwasaki, the Tennis Club captain and Minako's good friend.

"Stop complaining already. I mean we are already here right?" Kenji answered in a tired voice then continued, "Huh? There's an old couple on Minako and Minato's graves." Kenji said as he noticed an old couple just about to leave the Arisato twins' grave while he was trying to catch his breath, it was Bunkichi and Mitsuko.

"They're probably friends of Minako and Minato." Rio said.

"Yeah, they have a lot of friends who care about them." Yuko added. After the couple had disappeared, the three approached the graves and Yuko spoke up first.

"Hey Minato! You too Minako-chan! It would've been nice if you were here so you could've witnessed Rio and Kenji's great love story!" She said giggling a little while Kenji stuttered as he tried to think of something to say and Rio just kept silent.

"Yeah, Kenji was slow but at least they're finally together." Yuko continued while Rio and Kenji were both silent. "Come on you two, we came here to talk to our friends didn't we? So why are you lovebirds so quiet?" Yuko teased the two as Rio finally got her voice back.

"Y-yeah…" She stammered then continued. "We came to visit you guys and well, I came here to tell you that Kenji and I are together now." The black haired girl said obviously talking to Minako. Minako smiled upon hearing her friend say this.

Rio continued, "The Tennis Club is planning on another trip to Inaba and Yuko was going too. It would've been nice if you were here too so we can all go back there. We had a lot of fun there didn't we?" After she spoke, Kenji spoke up.

"Hey Minato, I know this is late news already since Yuko and Rio here broke it to your sister and I know you're together up there but I still wanted to tell you this. I'm over older women already." Kenji chuckles after saying this. "Not that Rio's that young or anything." He joked as Rio jabbed him on the stomach with her elbow while Yuko just laughed at the 2.

After some time of laughter, they became quiet again then, Yuko spoke up again. "Well you two, it's getting a bit late so we're going ahead now." The 3 friends said their goodbyes to the twins as their voices slowly faded.

Minato felt that it was ironic how their friends thought he and his sister were in heaven watching over them and such when in fact they were on the moon guarding the room where the so-called Maternal Being slept.

"They all visited us…" Minako said softly feeling a few tears fall down her cheeks.

"They all wish to see you again. You've touched their lives greatly and they care for both of you very much." Ryoji said softly as he gently wiped the tears off Minako's eyes. "I wish I can stay longer but I have to go now. I have some things I need to do. I'll visit you again sometime." Ryoji said smiling softly and wiping the last of Minako's tears as he left the twins.

"Minato-ni…" Minako called her brother out but he didn't respond. "I want to go back. I want to go back to our friends." Minako said sobbing weakly.

"Stop that Minako! You know that wanting isn't enough. We can't go back there because we have to stay here. Crying definitely won't help either so stop that." Minato said in an annoyed tone. Minako sobbed weakly not saying another word to her brother. Neither spoke for a while and only Minako's sobbing could be heard. As Minako was slowly calming down, they hear someone else sobbing and Minato's eyes widened when he heard the voice call out his name. It was someone he held dear and loved greatly.

"Minato, please come back…" The female voice said in between sobs then continued, "I need you Minato. I need you so much." Minato felt even more annoyed than he already was but he knew that this was just a cover, a cloak to hide the pain he's feeling.

"I love you so much Minato." The girl said in a trembling voice as she continued to cry. Minato felt like his heart was breaking when he heard the girl say this and said in a low voice, "I love you too Yukari."

The twins just stayed silent as they heard the girl's sobbing slowly fading. This was the last voice they heard for a while and everything went quiet again.

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><p>Meanwhile, "Are you sure you don't want to go with me Aigis?" the redhead leader of S.E.E.S. asked their blond friend.<p>

"No, Mitsuru. I would like to stay here with our other friends. I would like to come back to school after the summer break." The girl answered in a monotone voice.

"Very well then, I will be back in Japan after 3 months." Mitsuru said, giving up on convincing the robot to come with her.

"Please be careful while you are away. I will also take care of everyone on your behalf." Aigis said again. After this, Mitsuru headed towards the airport as Aigis and Koromaru looked on from the entrance. "Let us go home, Koromaru-san." The robot told her companion and Koromaru barked in agreement and the two of them left.

While they were walking, Koromaru barked and Aigis looked at him. "Are you sure it is him, Koromaru-san?" Koromaru barked again as he turned around.

"It's been a while." Ryoji said leaning on a tree.

"It is you Ryoji-san." Aigis said as Koromaru barked at him. "He said what are you doing here? Is the end coming again?" Aigis said as she translated what Koromaru said.

"Can we talk somewhere private or at least somewhere with less people?" Ryoji asked the robot.

"Very well, let us head to the Shrine. But you have to tell me now. Does your coming here again have something to do with the coming of the Fall?" Aigis asked Ryoji and he shook his head as a reply while he started walking, heading towards the shrine. After some time walking, the three reached the shrine. Koromaru started running around, playing as he left the 2 to talk. Aigis on the other hand, stood still near the entrance as she waited for Ryoji to start talking. Ryoji said as he sat down on one of the swings, "Come sit with me Aigis."

"I am fine standing. So what do you wish to talk about Ryoji-san?" The robot asked coldly.

"How is everyone doing?" The boy asked and the girl replied still in a cold, monotone voice, "Everybody is having a hard time even though everyone is trying to move on. Why do you ask?"

"Well, they are my friends too. What about you Aigis? How are you doing now?" Ryoji asked Aigis, concern in his voice.

"I am sad about losing Minako-san and Minato-san. They were the reason I wanted to live but now that they are both gone, I do not know what exactly to do. Can you please tell me, where you are trying to go with our conversation?" Aigis replied, with a hint of sadness and pain in her voice.

Ryoji smiled a little at her, "You're sounding more like a human every day. That's good. I just came by to see how everyone is doing and to prepare a few things for their return." Ryoji said with a smile as he stood up.

"Preparing a few things for their return? Are you talking about Minako-san and Minato-san?" Aigis asked, her voice sounded somewhat excited.

"It was nice talking to you again Aigis." Ryoji smiled sadly as he walked towards the robot, grabbed her metal hand and gave it a gentle kiss. After this, he started walking out of the shrine leaving Aigis wondering as he refused to answer her question. Aigis just stood by the entrance of the shrine, curious about what Ryoji meant as she waited for Koromaru to finish playing then they left the shrine.

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><p>There's been so much stress and issues in the dorm after the Arisato twins "passed away". There was always awkward silence and a heavy atmosphere. This was the first time in two months that Fuuka felt happy. Natsuki arrived earlier to visit her dear friend and they went out to the movies and spent a lot of time together happily.<p>

"I'm so glad you visited Natsuki-chan! You have no idea how happy I am right now." Fuuka said to her friend with a genuine smile.

"Well I missed you to so I had to come here and visit you." Natsuki said then continued, "It's a different feeling when we're together physically than when we talk online." "That's true." Fuuka giggled.

"So how are you coping with the death of the Arisato twins? I mean, they're from the same dorm as you after all. It must have affected you." Natsuki suddenly asked.

"That was sudden." Fuuka said and they both giggled then Fuuka continued with a more serious tone, "I'm sad. They were my close friends so I felt really down when they died." Fuuka tried to hold her tears back and Natsuki came closer to her comforting her.

"It's going to be okay. I know you're sad, that's actually why I came here." Natsuki told her friend with a soft smile as Fuuka wiped her tears smiling back at her.

"You're a great friend, Natsuki." She said and they both smiled then Natsuki looked behind Fuuka curiously.

"What's wrong Natsuki-chan?" Fuuka asked looking at her friend.

"There's a really cute boy looking at you." Natsuki giggled pointing behind Fuuka.

"It's not polite to point Natsuki-chan." Fuuka said giggling as she turned around and dropped her jaw in surprise.

From a good distance, Ryoji was standing looking at her with a smile. "Ryoji-kun… What is he doing here?" She muttered to herself.

"See?" Natsuki giggled even more while standing close to her smaller friend. Ryoji waved at Fuuka as he continued to look at her.

"Natsuki-chan, do you mind if I leave you for a few minutes?" Fuuka asked her friend in a serious tone.

"Huh? Is something up?" Natsuki asked, confused. "I don't know yet. Just wait for me, I'll be back soon." Fuuka said as she started to walk towards the fountain. Ryoji headed towards the same fountain as Natsuki looked at both of them confused.

"She seems like a close friend of yours." Ryoji said as a greeting to Fuuka.

"Yes, she is." Fuuka replied. "Why are you here Ryoji? You said that if we defeat the Nyx, it would delay the coming of the Fall for a longer time." Fuuka asked.

"My being here has nothing to do with that. I came here to ask you about something important." Ryoji replied then continued, "Do you know anybody by the name Theodore or Elizabeth? I believe they're acquaintances of Minako and Minato."

"Yes, I've helped the twins before in a battle against Theodore and Elizabeth." Fuuka answered.

"Do you have any way of contacting them?" Ryoji asked again.

Fuuka looked at him curiosity running in her head, "Why?" she asked.

"I need to talk to them." Ryoji said. "Well?"

"I do have Theodore's number, if that's enough for you." Fuuka said still curious.

"Can you please call him for me?" Ryoji asked then Fuuka sighed, "I am dialing his number but you talk to him." She said.

"Okay." Ryoji said. Fuuka took her phone out then dialed Theodore's number. Once it started ringing, Fuuka gave the phone to Ryoji.

"Hello, Fuuka? Is something wrong?" Theodore greeted on the other end.

"I'm sorry, this isn't Fuuka. I'm Ryoji, a friend of hers." Ryoji answered.

"Did something terrible happen to Fuuka?" Theodore asked in concern and Ryoji immediately answered, "Not at all. Listen, if it's not too much to ask, I'd like to talk to you personally."

Theodore asked in a curious tone, "Hmmm? Talk to me? I don't think we know each other so what are we going to talk about?" Ryoji laughed a bit as he heard this then softly said, carefully eyeing Fuuka, "It's about your very special guests." Theodore gasped upon hearing the word guests, "Minako-sama and Minato-sama?"

"Yes." Was Ryoji's simple answer then continued "So can we talk?"

"Of course, where shall we meet?" Theodore asked without having second thoughts.

"I'd like to meet you in the place where they're resting peacefully." Ryoji answered and Theodore asked again, "Do you mean their grave?" and Ryoji replied, "Yes. I will be waiting for you there." With that, Ryoji hung up and gave the phone back to Fuuka.

"Thank you for your help, Fuuka. Well, I have to get going. Take care of yourself and have a good life." Before Fuuka could ask any more questions, Ryoji has already left.

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><p>Fuuka, confused returned to her friend who was waiting in the Chagall Café. "I'm sorry I took so long." Fuuka apologized.<p>

"No worries. So who was the cute guy?" Natsuki said, teasing her friend. "Ryoji Mochizuki. He arrived in Gekkoukan High after you left but he studied there only for a while." Fuuka said in a somewhat blank manner. Natsuki looked at her with concern as Fuuka snapped back and gave her friend a smile.

"Do you want to go to the Karaoke bar after we finish our drinks?" Fuuka asked cheerfully and Natsuki's short answer was a nod.

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><p>I was trying to avoid making it longer that it already was but it is better than hurting people's eyes so, sorry for the chapters being too lengthy.<p>

I can't think of any other way of making the chapters shorter so again, sorry. T_T

I will try my best to make the other chapters shorter .

Also updated a few words, sentences I noticed in the process of adding spaces.

Thanks so much for everyone who find interest in my very first *not to mention, long* fanfiction. (hopefully it won't be the last either. hoho)


	2. Chapter 2  Farewell

Chapter 2: Farewell

Theodore rushed out of the Velvet Room after hanging up the phone. Without saying a word to his sisters and to his master, he left and headed as fast as he could to the cemetery where the Arisato twins were buried.

As he neared the entrance to the cemetery, he saw a young man with a noticeable, long yellow scarf standing by the gates. The man looked at him seemingly waiting for Theodore to get closer and soon, Theodore was close to the gates.

The man approached him, "You're Theodore right? I'm Ryoji. The guy you talked to on the phone earlier. Minako-san has a visitor right now so it's best that we just talk here." Ryoji paused for a while, looked around then continued, "Have you heard of the Arcana Sword?" Theodore nodded and Ryoji spoke again, "Good. Then you must be aware of its powers, right?"

"Of course, but what does it have to do with Masters Minako and Minato?" Theodore asked.

"It is powerful enough to seal the Maternal Being for at least another billion years." Ryoji answered still leaning on the wall.

Upon realizing this, Theodore gasped, "If we use it to seal the Nyx, then Master Minako and Master Minato can come back!" Ryoji smiled a bit as he watched Theodore's reaction then Theodore suddenly fell silent when he realized something else. "But the Arcana Sword..." he paused then continued, "Nobody really knows how to retrieve it." Theodore frowned after saying this.

"That's where the Arisato twins come in." Ryoji said still with a smile on his face. Theodore seemed to understand what Ryoji meant quickly and smiled a bit. "I'm assuming you are willing to help then." Ryoji said and Theodore nodded then said, "I'll do anything for our beloved guests."

"Well, I'm leaving now. I'll see if I can contact you again before I send them back." This was the last thing Ryoji said before he disappeared again.

Theodore was about to head back the Velvet Room when he decided to visit the Arisato twins. He was almost in the spot where the twins were buried when he saw a tall, white haired guy standing by Minako's grave. "I see. So _he is_ Minako-sama's visitor. I should head back to the Velvet Room then." Theodore said as he turned around and took his leave.

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><p>"Hey Minako, sorry I haven't visited you for a while. I don't know what's up but something seems to be wrong with me ever since you left." The gray haired guy standing by Minako's grave said as he sighed.<p>

"I miss you Minako." He said again and paused for a while, taking a beautiful small box out of his pocket, "I'm going to Tokyo tomorrow so I'll leave your music box with you and I'm not sure when's the next time I'm gonna be able to visit you either but I promise I'll visit you as much as I can. Also, I'll give you a necklace the next time I visit you." The man fell silent again then his phone started ringing. He took the phone out and looked at the ID.

"Shinji has the worst timing." He answered the phone, "Yeah?"

"Where the hell are you Aki? The others have been bothering me because of you." Shinjiro said on the other end.

"Where else do you think I'd be?" Akihiko answered and Shinjiro replied getting even more annoyed, "Well get back here now, these guys are annoying the shit out of me." Then, Shinjiro hung up.

Akihiko sighed as he looked at his deceased girlfriend's grave, "Well, I guess I have to go now. I love you Minako." He smiled a little while looking at Minako's grave gently setting the music box down on the ground then he left.

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><p>Minako was trying to hold back her tears again after she heard Akihiko's voice. He was trying to talk the usual way he does but Minako and Minato knew, by the sound and tone of his voice, that he was in a lot of pain.<p>

"Don't you dare cry again, Minako. Crying wouldn't help anybody, not you, not Akihiko-senpai." Minato told his sister in an authoritative voice. This was the last thing the twins heard before the room was filled with silence, making the atmosphere even heavier than it already was.

Minato was thinking to himself, he felt really annoyed at their current state. If he and his sister didn't sign that contract, things may have been different. They may still be on earth, living like ordinary high school students hanging out with friends, dating and such. If it wasn't for that contract they wouldn't be here at all. If it wasn't for that contract, Minako would still be her cheerful, funny self.

He was frustrated with their current state. He was frustrated with Death/Ryoji and Nyx. He was frustrated with the contract. He was frustrated with himself. He was frustrated with his sister. He was frustrated with everything but he couldn't do anything about it. All he could do was stand there by the door as a statue, motionless. He couldn't comfort his girlfriend who was crying earlier. He couldn't comfort little Maiko. He couldn't even comfort his twin sister, standing right next to him. The fact that he couldn't do anything about anything made him sick. He wanted to throw up but he couldn't do that either.

"I am a Great Seal, protecting everyone from the coming of the Fall." He muttered to himself. This has become Minato's mantra to forget all the frustration building up inside of him but at this very moment, it doesn't seem to help at all.

"Minato-ni… Are you alright?" Minako asked for the fifth time but still her brother didn't answer her. "Minato-ni?" she called out her brother and just like that, Minato snapped back into reality after drowning in his own thoughts. "Hmm?" He asked his sister.

"Are you alright?" the younger Arisato asked the boy. "Yeah" Was the only reply Minako got from her brother but knowing him, a man of few words, this was enough for her to tell that he was alright. Minato continued to repeat his mantra to try and forget about his frustrations. He knew he wasn't okay but he didn't want his sister to worry so he just said he was.

"I am a hero who saved the world from destruction so why the heck can't I be proud? Why aren't I happy?" Minato asked himself again. Minato's frustration was coming back and involuntarily, he screamed on top of his voice which shocked Minako.

"Oh dear, that doesn't sound good." Ryoji said as he appeared right in front of the two.

"What the heck do you want now?" Minato said with a strained voice.

"Well I said I'll visit you again." Ryoji replied with a smile.

"Why can't you be the one in here? You should be the one guarding Nyx making sure she doesn't wake up!" Minato said, his voice getting louder.

Ryoji's smile turned into a frown. "Even if I wanted to, I can't do that. If I'm the one guarding the Maternal Being, the call of hopelessness and death would be stronger waking her faster." He said sadly.

"That's bull! You're just passing your responsibility to us so you can enjoy pretending to be human!" Minato said angrily.

"That's not true, Minato-san. Sure, I wish I could be human and live like everyone else but I'm not passing my responsibility to you or Minako-san. My responsibility is to bring about the Fall. Your duty is to keep it from happening. Evidently, my responsibility is different from yours." Ryoji explained.

"Liar! You've been coming to earth haven't you? You've been going there to enjoy, pretending to be human while we're stuck here unable to do anything!" Minato said taking more of his anger out on Ryoji.

"That's enough!" Minako said before Ryoji could answer back. "Please, stop fighting." Minako continued as she started to cry. Ryoji felt disgusted for making Minako cry. The three of them fell silent with only Minako's sobbing filling the room.

When Minako finally calmed down, Ryoji spoke up, "It is true. I've been going to earth…" Minako was surprised while Minato was about to speak when Ryoji continued, "But not for the reasons Minato-san said. I've been going there to find another way to seal the Maternal Being so you can return to your world and live." Neither of the Arisato twins said anything as Ryoji left them with sadness in his eyes.

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><p>Akihiko sighed as he got to the front door of the dorm. He wanted to stay longer at Minako's grave but he knew that if didn't come back sooner, Shinjiro was going to come get him and this was the last thing he wanted.<p>

As he opened the door, everyone yelled "Surprise!" which surprised him indeed. His dorm mates along with the entire Boxing Club were there.

"Hope you like the surprise, captain!" One of the members shouted as Akihiko started walking inside then Koromaru barked as he jumped over him knocking Akihiko off his feet.

"Careful boy" Akihiko said with a small smile as he sat up and ruffled the dog's white fur. "What's with all this?" Akihiko asked everyone then Ken answered him, "You're leaving for Tokyo tomorrow so we all decided to throw you a going away party and the entire Boxing Club helped out."

Akihiko looked at his childhood friend who was standing on the corner quietly like always as he brushed off the dirt from his clothes, "Did you have anything to do with this Shinji?" he asked and the guy in red pea coat answered while pulling his beanie down, "Hell no. These boys just came here and bugged me the entire afternoon. They're annoying as shit."

"This also serves as a going away party for Shinjiro-san." Aigis said.

"Huh? You're leaving Shinji?" Akihiko looked at his friend again but Shinji didn't answer him.

"Where are you going Shinji?" the gray haired guy asked again, "None of your business." Was Shinji's simple answer as Akihiko sighed a little and asked, "How long will you be gone?"

"I ain't comin' back." Shinjiro said flatly, starting to get annoyed.

"What? What about school and these guys?" Akihiko asked.

"I'll come back if I want to but I don't so don't go around messin' with my business. These guys are old enough to look after themselves and I ain't their dad that I have to look after them." The brunette man replied.

"And Ken?" Akihiko asked again and Shinjiro quickly answered, "He can take care of himself so quit buggin' me." Then, Shinjiro headed for the door and left Akihiko annoyed.

The party went on for hours and ended at 11pm before the last guest left the dorm. Akihiko sat down beside Aigis sighing as he did so.

"That was fun." Fuuka said as she sat opposite Akihiko and Aigis. "Yeah, but are you sure it's okay that I spend the night here?" Natsuki asked. "Of course" Fuuka said with a smile. "Well, I'm going ahead now." The blond visitor said as she went upstairs.

"By the way, where's Takeba? I haven't seen her since I came back." Akihiko asked the blue haired girl sitting in front of him.

Fuuka frowned and said, "She went straight to her room when she got back and she refused to go out after that."

"I see." Akihiko said, frowning after asking such a question.

"Uhmm… Sanada-san…" Ken said nervously as he approached the older guy. "Yeah?" Akihiko asked as he looked at the boy.

"Well, we got you a present." Ken said handing out a box to Akihiko.

"Th-thanks…"Akihiko said as he took the box and opened it while feeling awkward. The younger students gave their senior a new pair of gloves to protect the boxer's precious hands.

"Those gloves will be very useful to you, Akihiko-san. It will protect your hands when you are not in the ring." Aigis said. Akihiko liked the gift but didn't know what to say to his juniors so he just said thanks.

Koromaru barked and Aigis translated, "Koromaru-san is very happy that Akihiko-san likes the gift we got him." Akihiko smiled and patted the dog's head.

"That was a great party but it would have been better if we were all here." Fuuka said. "Yeah" Ken agreed and Koromaru barked again so Aigis spoke up, "Koromaru-san agrees as well. He said it would have been perfect if Mitsuru-san, Yukari-san, Junpei-san, Minato-san and Minako-san were here too."

Everybody fell silent as they heard the last two names Aigis mentioned. Akihiko frowned a bit then after some time of silence, he spoke up, "I'm heading to bed. I'm leaving early tomorrow so I guess this will be goodbye. I'll try to visit as soon as I can." He said then headed up to his room. Everybody else followed and went to back their rooms.

Shinjiro looked at his pocket watch, 11:30, it was late already and yet, he was still out, sitting on the grass and looking at the moon. "Tch. Well, guess I'm headin' back. You idiots better take care of yourselves." He said as he stood up then walked away giving the graves one last look before leaving.

* * *

><p>"Please fasten your seatbelts. We are now about to land in London International Airport." One of the flight attendants announced as Mitsuru sat quietly by the window sighing heavily. She was surprised to realize that she was already in London when it felt like she's only been on the plane for a few minutes.<p>

Ever since the twins' death, she has always been lost in her own thoughts, often losing track of time. It felt really weird for her. When her father died, she was depressed for a few days or so but the Arisato twins' death was different. She's been feeling down ever since their death and that was 2 months ago. She didn't really think it would affect her this way.

"We have now arrived in London. Thank you for flying with us and have a wonderful day." The pilot said. Mitsuru snapped out of her trance after she heard this, this was the first time she took a passenger plane. She always took their private plane whenever she needed to go out of the country but for some reason, she decided to take ride a passenger plane this time.

On the way to the conveyor belt to retrieve her luggage, a young man approached her. "Miss Kirijo?" The man asked. Mitsuru looked at the man, he was taller than Shinjiro and he had blond hair and green eyes. The man's body was well built and it looked really well in his black suit and he seemed to be in his early 20's.

"Yes." Mitsuru said after observing the man for a while.

"My name is Max. Mr. Lockheart has sent me to pick you up." The man named Max said and Mitsuru just nodded. "Please allow me to take your luggage. Which one is it?" Max asked and Mitsuru replied, "It's the black one, over there." Mitsuru pointed at the direction where her luggage was and Max picked it up from the conveyor belt.

"Do you have any more bags Miss Kirijo?" Max asked again and Mitsuru just shook her head. "Very well, let's head to your hotel now. This way please, madam." The young man said as he walked ahead of Mitsuru while carrying her luggage with ease. "He's strong and quite good looking…" Mitsuru was shocked with her own thoughts and blushed a little upon her realization.

"Here we are." Max said as he opened the door for Mitsuru. "Thank you." Mitsuru said giving the man a soft smile. After Mitsuru got in the car, Max closed the door for her and opened the trunk to put the Kirijo heiress's luggage on the trunk. The driver approached him and said, "Please allow me sir." "Thank you Marcus." Max said and headed to the passenger seat and waited for the driver then they went on their way.

* * *

><p>In a room of Velvet, two women with white hair and golden eyes, the sisters of Theodore were talking. "Where is Theodore?" Margaret asked her younger sister.<p>

"I don't know. He just left all of a sudden earlier." Elizabeth answered.

"The Master has been looking for him since this afternoon." Margaret said while placing her hands on her temples as she felt a migraine setting in. "When he comes back, tell him to head to the Master's room. I'll take my rest now." Margaret said as she left. Elizabeth just sighed as she sat back down on the chair sipping a cup of tea.

A few minutes later, Theodore arrived with a smile on his face. "Where have you been?" Elizabeth asked her younger brother as she set her cup on the table. "The Master has been looking for you so please head to his room now." She said before Theodore could say anything. Theodore nodded and headed to a golden door, knocking on it before slowly opening it.

"Master?" he said as he turned the knob of the door and peeked inside. His master, Igor, was sitting on a chair made of blue velvet and gold in front of a fireplace made of gold with a book in hand.

"Come in Theodore." He said as he closed the book on his hand and set it on the table.

"You asked for me my Master?" the man in uniform asked his employer.

"Where have you been?" Igor asked without looking back at Theodore who was standing straight as a log behind him.

"Outside, I visited our previous guests then I dropped by the Takoyaki Stand Master Minako brought me before." Theodore answered eagerly. Igor stood up from his chair facing the younger man as he slowly walked. He was heading out of the room when he stopped right beside Theodore and looked him in the eye.

"Is that really the reason you came out Theodore?" Igor asked and Theodore started to get nervous. He wasn't really sure if he should mention the plan of getting their former guests back. Igor just grinned as he looked at the nervous Theodore then he continued to walk to the door.

"I believe you have some preparations to do but do it some other time, tonight, rest. I have errands for you tomorrow." The man with the long nose said as he turned the knob of the golden door and left. Theodore sighed as his master left. Somehow, he had a feeling that Igor knew the real reason why he left that afternoon. Their master knew what they were doing almost all the time but he knew that his master was powerful enough to know these details.

Theodore quickly left the room and headed to his own. When he got there, he took his cap off and put it on a table looking at the Jack Frost doll beside it that Minako got for him as a quest. He smiled as he looked at it for a while then he looked at another doll beside it. It was a Pyro Jack doll he got after trading one of the 3 Jack Frost dolls. He can still remember it clearly, he asked Minako to get him 3 Jack Frost dolls, one that he'll keep, one that he'll give as a gift and one that he'll trade. He doesn't remember with whom he traded the other Jack Frost doll with while he gave the other to his sister, Elizabeth.

Theodore's smile widened as he remembered these things. He sat down on his bed quietly for a while then he looked at his clock. "12 midnight." Theodore said as he read the time then went to sleep.

* * *

><p>Yukari couldn't sleep at all. She's been trying to since she got back from the cemetery. It wasn't the party that prevented her from sleeping. It didn't bother her at all. She sat up on her bed and took a picture frame on her bedside table then sighed. It was a picture of Minato and her. She just stared at it trying to smile while tearing up.<p>

"Hey Minato, it's already 12. Remember when the Dark Hour still existed? We would all be by the entrance of Tartarus now and you'd be picking out who you'd bring along when you go up. I remember, sometimes Minako argues with you because she wants to be the leader that day." She paused as she wiped the tears falling to the frame.

"Remember when you guys peeked at us in the bath back in the school trip? I'm still mad at you for that." Yukari said as she giggled a little wiping the tears in her eyes, after this she became quiet again and just stared at the picture for a while, "I miss you Minato." She said as she lied down back on her bed while holding the picture close to her and closed her eyes.

* * *

><p>Aigis entered Minako's room quietly and sat on the empty bed. She ran her cold hands on the cover as she smiled then lied down on the bed. Aigis has been sleeping on Minako and Minato's rooms alternately. This was her way of feeling the twins close even though they were gone.<p>

Aigis never showed it but she was just as devastated as Yukari and Akihiko were when the twins died. It broke her heart when she found out the twins were gone because she loved them greatly. It was the very reason why she was never comfortable whenever Ryoji came near either of the twins.

"Ryoji" Aigis thought to herself as she put one of her hands on her head. Lately, she's been thinking of Ryoji a lot. "Ryoji…" She said under her breath as she placed her other hand on her head covering her face using both hands while closing her eyes and slowly falling asleep.

* * *

><p>Ryoji sighed as he sat on a chair in an empty room, all black. This was the place that Ryoji had been staying in since he left earth. He did lost his human form on December 31 but as soon as Nyx was defeated and the Arisato twins became the Great Seal, he has been slowly regaining his human form. Right now, he was almost back to his human form, with the exception of his stomach. He lifted his long-sleeve shirt to look at his stomach, all black like his shadow form but he noticed a few spots resembling the color of his human skin.<p>

"I wonder if me regaining my human form has anything to do with the re-awakening of the Maternal Being…" Ryoji frowned at the thought of this, biting his lower lip lightly. Ryoji looked up looking more worried, sadness traceable in his eyes.

"Please… No…" Ryoji bit his lower lip out of frustration. "Please… Don't let that happen. Not so soon." Ryoji bent down while still sitting on his chair covering his head, shaking in frustration.

* * *

><p>The gray haired boxer tossed and turned on his bed, groaning a little in his sleep then suddenly jerked up, panting heavily, sweat dripping all over his body. He sat like this for a few minutes then turned his head to a frame on his bedside table. It was a picture of Minako. He took the picture and stared at it.<p>

"I had that nightmare again Minako." Akihiko frowned as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. "I'm trying my best to move on but it keeps haunting me. First was Miki burning in the fire, then you dying in my arms. This is my entire fault. I'm not strong enough to protect anyone. I've been trying so hard to be stronger so I can protect you and everyone else that I care about but I still failed." Akihiko frowned feeling helpless as he set the picture back on the table.

"You are strong Akihiko. Their death wasn't your fault. It was their fate that led them to their deaths. It is something that you can't fight even if you wanted to." His persona, Caesar, said in his mind.

"If I was strong enough, I'm sure I could've prevented it from happening." Akihiko said then Caesar spoke again, "Even if you could've prevented it, something else will happen that will lead them to their deaths. Death is inevitable, whether you like it or not. Everyone dies, that's how life is. The only difference is when and how one dies. You can't keep fighting fate forever, especially not for your own, selfish happiness." Akihiko frowned upon his persona's last remark.

"I'm not the only one who'd be glad if—" he said but was cut off by Caesar, "Think whatever you want to think. One day you'll realize I'm correct." The persona said before disappearing into the depths of Akihiko's thoughts. Akihiko sighed as he lied back down on his bed and slowly drifted back to sleep.

* * *

><p>Shinjiro couldn't sleep at all. He kept tossing and turning on his bed the entire night and before he knew it, his alarm clock started ringing. He lazily lifted his hand to reach for the clock and cursed under his breath in the process. He lifted his head a little to look at the time, it was 5 in the morning. He knew this was too early but he preferred to leave before Akihiko even gets out of bed and starts questioning him again. He set the clock back down on his bedside table and grumbled under his breath. He got out of bed and quietly made his way to the bathroom making sure he doesn't wake anybody in the process. Shinjiro took a quick bath, dressed up and returned to his room. He packed all his stuff in his bag. He didn't have a lot, but he still had stuff.<p>

As he left the room closing the door gently, he takes about a minute or two to give the entire floor one last look then he made his way downstairs. He was about to open the front door when Koromaru lifted his head sleepily looking at him from a corner in the living room. He looked back at the white dog and approached it, patting the dog and ruffling its fur.

"Guess I should prepare these guys somethin' to eat before I leave." The brunette said then headed for the kitchen followed by Koromaru. He set his bag on the table as he quickly prepared omelet and rice for everyone.

He was almost finished making the last meal, the one for Koromaru when he heard footsteps from the hallway. Shinjiro was alerted as he took a quick look on his watch. It was only five minutes past 6.

"Damn it! Who the heck got up this early?" He asked under his breath, panicking a little since he didn't want anybody to see him before he left. He tried opening the back door to no avail. "Of course it's locked. It always was." He grumbled under his breath and tried to head out of the kitchen when the kitchen door opened and he froze.

"Sorry, I didn't know somebody was already up." The blond girl said as she stepped in the kitchen. "Wait. Aren't you that Aragaki person? Sanada-senpai's gangster friend or something…." the girl asked and Shinjiro sighed in relief, it was only Yamagishi's friend.

"Yeah, and you're Yamagishi's pal." He responded to the younger girl who was looking at him. "Whaddaya need from here so early?" Shinjiro asked.

Natsuki replied as she took a glass of water, "I spent the night here after the party. I was just about to leave when I felt thirsty."

"So you're just gonna leave without saying goodbye to your pal?" Shinjiro asked sarcastically and got a sarcastic response in return.

"You're one to talk. You're leaving without saying goodbye to any of them." Natsuki replied smirking at Shinjiro. Shinjiro just groaned with an annoyed look as he took his bag from the table and left the dorm.

"What a weirdo…" Natsuki commented as she patted Koromaru's head and drank the water she got.

Shinjiro cursed under his breath after closing the front door. "That girl is weird. How she and Yamagishi are friends is beyond me." He sighed and then noticed a man, about the same age as his juniors standing across the street with a sad smile on his face staring at Minako's window. He had light skin and black hair. He also had a noticeable mole under his eye and he had a yellow scarf on even though it was a warm day.

Shinjiro stared at him wondering who he was as the man kept staring at the dorm not really noticing Shinjiro's presence. The front door opened again and Natsuki stepped out. "Thought you already left?" Natsuki asked the older guy and noticed him staring at something across the street.

"Huh? That's the guy Fuuka talked to yesterday." Natsuki said getting Shinjiro's attention.

"You know that guy?" He asked the blond girl, turning to her and she answered with a firm no. They looked across the street again and he was no longer there.

"Weird." They said in unison.

"Are you followin' me kid?" Shinjiro asked while walking as he noticed the blond girl walking behind him. Natsuki hissed, "I'm not trying to follow you. It just happened that we're going in the same direction and you're walking ahead of me."

"Where ya headed?" The guy in red pea coat asked without looking back at Natsuki and she answered, "Train station. You?"

"Same." Was the only reply Shinjiro gave the girl and this was the end of their conversation.

* * *

><p>Yukari rubbed her eyes for the nth time. She's still confused with what she just saw. She woke up a few minutes ago and went to Minako's room to check on Aigis. She always checked on the robot wanting to be sure, she was okay then she looked outside the window and there he was, standing still with his sad smile, looking at Minako's window.<p>

It was Ryoji. Yukari couldn't believe her own eyes and rubbed them and when she looked outside again, he wasn't there anymore. Yukari dismissed this as hallucination although she thought if she'd imagine seeing someone it would definitely be Minato. She was so confused with what she "thinks" she saw and didn't notice Shinjiro and Natsuki leave the dorm.

Yukari looked out the window again then spoke to herself softly, "It was just my imagination. I'm positive." Then she was a bit startled to feel a cold metal hand on her shoulder.

"Forgive me for startling you. Is something wrong Yukari-san?" Aigis asked the girl in pink pajamas.

"A-aigis! Sorry, it's just that I thought I saw Ryoji outside, looking this way." Yukari replied as she turned around to face the robot girl.

"Ryoji-san was outside?" Aigis asked with a worried expression in her face.

"But I'm sure I was just seeing things. I wasn't able to sleep well last night." Yukari laughed nervously waving her hands frantically. Aigis sighed a little in relief.

"Then you should get some more sleep Yukari-san." She said as Yukari sighed in relief as well seeing worry disappear from her friend's face.

"Yeah, I was going to do that." She replied then the robot spoke up again, "Okay. I'm going downstairs now. I will take Koromaru-san for a walk."

Aigis left the room and went downstairs as she had said. Yukari sighed again then went back to her room and lied back down on her bed. She was still confused. Did she really saw Ryoji or was she just seeing things? And if she did see Ryoji, did it mean that the world is in danger again? If so, then that would mean that Minako and Minato's sacrifice was fruitless. Then again, maybe she was just seeing things. Maybe she just thought she saw Ryoji but of all people she'll be imagining showing up, why was it Ryoji? It could have been her father, Minato or Minako but why Ryoji?

Yukari didn't resent Ryoji for who he was. It wasn't his fault and he was just as unhappy as they were with his real identity. Honestly, Yukari didn't resent him but he was the last person Yukari wished to see. It wasn't because she was mad at him but because she was scared of him. She's scared because of the threat he posed to humanity. She was scared that his presence will bring about the end of everything. She was scared because Ryoji bring about death. Ryoji is death.

Yukari is so confused and so many questions started clouding her mind as soon as she "thought" she saw Ryoji outside and she slowly fell asleep.

* * *

><p>"Yukari-san seems to be doing well…" Ryoji said with a soft smile while standing close to the Arisato twins, leaning closer to Minato as he said this. "Don't come near me." Minato hissed.<p>

"How about Aki?" Minako asked with excitement. Ryoji turned his head a little to face the girl and frowned. "I'm sorry Minako-san. I didn't see him at all."

"It's okay Ryoji." Minako replied with a smile on her face. The smile on Ryoji's face returned and this time, it was a smile without a hint of sadness.

"What do you want this time?" Minato asked in an annoyed tone.

"I just wanted to see how you guys are doing." Ryoji replied, still smiling.

"Every time you come here, it's to rub the fact that you can go down there and see them while we're here helpless on our faces." Minato remarked even more annoyed. Ryoji frowned at Minato's statement. He wanted to tell him he was wrong but he couldn't get the words out of his mouth.

"That's not true. Ryoji tells us how they're doing because he knows how much we miss them and how much we want to know how they're doing." Minako said trying to defend the shadow from her twin.

"Minako-san, you don't have to defend me…" Ryoji looked at the girl frowning.

"Yeah, if he's got bones, he'd defend himself. But apparently, he doesn't." Minato said sarcastically. Minako pouted and Ryoji sighed as he thought of how pointless their conversation was getting.

"There's this legendary item, the Arcana Sword that is powerful enough to seal the Maternal Being in place of you. If we can get this sword, you can both return to earth and live with your friends again." Ryoji began. Minako gasped and Minato was the first to find his tongue, "Tell us more about this." Ryoji snapped his fingers and in an instant, a chair appeared and he sat down as he started to tell them more about this.

* * *

><p>Aigis put the leash on Koromaru as they left the dorm then Koromaru barked.<p>

"Are you sure he was here Koromaru-san?" The robot asked Koromaru as he kept going around the place where Ryoji stood earlier across the dorm and barked again.

"What do you think could he be doing here?" Aigis asked her companion followed by barks from the white dog.

"You could be right Koromaru-san. However, he may be here because the Fall is approaching again." Aigis said as she and Koromaru started walking and Koromaru barked at her sadly.

"What's confusing me though is why is it coming again so soon if Ryoji-san said so himself before that if we defeated the Nyx, everyone would be safe for at least another hundred years." She said, more to herself as she frowned and Koromaru looked up at her and barked again.

"You're right Koromaru-san that might be the reason why. If it is, then it's very sad." Aigis said frowning while brushing the dog's fur then she noticed two ladies looking at her weirdly, whispering to each other. She assumed that it was because she was talking to a dog. She felt embarrassed as she continued to walk with Koromaru. They stayed silent as they continued their walk to the shrine. Aigis was silent because she was very worried while Koromaru stayed silent not knowing what to say or rather, "bark" to his robot companion.

After a few more minutes of walking in silence, they finally reached the shrine and Aigis removed Koromaru's leash so he can play and run around his old home. As Koromaru took off and started running around the shrine, Aigis' phone started ringing.

"Hello Mitsuru-san. How are you doing?" She greeted the person on the other end of the phone.

"I'm doing well. How are things there Aigis?" Mitsuru asked.

"I believe Shinjiro-san has already left the dorm and everybody else is well." The blond robot replied in her monotone voice.

"That's good to hear. Well I just wanted to check on things back there. Don't hesitate to call me if there's any problem." Mitsuru said.

"Well Mitsuru-san there is something I…" Aigis said but didn't finish her sentence.

"Hmmm? What's the problem Aigis?" Mitsuru asked, worried.

"Nothing. Please disregard what I was just about to say. It was nothing. Please have a good night Mitsuru-san." Aigis said and ended the call before Mitsuru could ask more.

* * *

><p>"He-hello? Aigis?" Mitsuru called on her phone to realize that Aigis has ended the call. Mitsuru sighed, worried with what could possibly wrong. She tried to call Aigis again but she didn't answer the call anymore. Mitsuru wanted to ignore it but somehow she felt like what Aigis wanted to say was important. Mitsuru suddenly remembered Yukari and dialed her number.<p>

"Hello Yukari?" She said and heard a muffled voice groaning then asking, "Who is this?"

"Uhmm… It's Mitsuru." The redhead said feeling embarrassed about calling Yukari so early. Yukari gasped upon the realization of who was on the other end of the phone and fell off her bed.

"Y-Yukari! Are you alright?" Mitsuru asked worried because of the loud thump she heard.

"Oww…" Yukari whispered to herself as she rubbed her backside and got up. "Hello senpai? Sorry about that. How was your flight to London?" She asked her senior.

"It went well. How are things there?" The redhead asked.

"Oh, everything's fine and perfectly quiet. Thanks to Stupei being away. Is something wrong senpai?" Yukari asked seriously.

"Well. I'm a bit worried. I think Aigis was trying to tell me something earlier. Did something bad happen there?" Mitsuru asked.

"No. I mean, you've only been gone for a day so there's nothing interesting going on at the moment. I did have this weird hallucination earlier. But it's nothing to worry about. It's just from my lack of sleep." Yukari replied.

"I see." Mitsuru frowned, still not feeling at ease. "Very well then, I'm heading to bed now. Please call me if any problem arises." Mitsuru said as she hung up. Mitsuru placed the phone on the bedside table as she lied down on the bed and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

><p>Fuuka knocked on Yukari's door lightly. "Yukari-chan, are you alright?" She asked her friend. She heard a loud thump from Yukari's room as she stepped out of her own room and immediately approached Yukari's door.<p>

"Yeah, I'm fine." Yukari said from the inside of the room. "Are you sure?" Fuuka asked again. "Yeah!" the taller girl answered in a louder voice.

"Well, Akihiko-senpai is going to leave soon. Do you want to see him off?" Fuuka asked again heard Yukari say yes. "Okay. We'll wait for you downstairs." Fuuka said as she smiled quietly making her way downstairs. This was the first time Yukari agreed to come with them somewhere since the tragic event with the Arisato twins.

"Oh, good morning Fuuka-san" Ken greeted the blue haired girl while sitting on the couch, reading a book. "Good morning Ken-kun." She greeted him back.

"Would you like to help me prepare breakfast?" Fuuka asked the boy and without putting his book down or lifting his eyes to meet hers he replied, "Too late. Aragaki-san already prepared us a meal before he left."

"Huh? Shinjiro-senpai left already? I thought I could see him off as well." Fuuka frowned. Then they heard footsteps from the stairs. It was Akihiko, already dressed with his luggage in hand. He set the luggage down near the couch and greeted the younger occupants with a smile.

"We should eat before you leave Sanada-san." Ken said as he set his book on the table.

"Yeah" Akihiko replied and the trio headed for the kitchen where Shinjiro left the omelets for everyone. Fuuka and Akihiko started eating as Ken started making coffee and they heard the front door open and Koromaru bark. Koromaru ran straight to Akihiko almost knocking him off the chair.

"Easy boy" Akihiko said with a smile as he ruffled the dog's fur.

"Come on Aigis, take a seat." Ken said as he gave Akihiko a cup of coffee and took a sip from his own mug.

Soon, Yukari entered the kitchen with a small smile on her face and joined them for breakfast. They were all quiet, nobody knew what to say. There were originally 11 of them in this dorm but now, there were only 6 of them. The other five were all gone. 2 were dead, 1 left for her duties as the head of the Kirijo group, 1 left to who knows where and 1 left to forget the bad things that happened to them.

The silence was deafening Yukari so she decided to speak up, "So Shinjiro-senpai left huh?" "Yeah, he's probably annoyed with himself since he's been held back a year." Akihiko answered with a smile on his face.

"It's because of me. If I didn't call him out on October 4, he wouldn't have been shot that day and he wouldn't have been stuck in the hospital." Ken said frowning and looking down his feet.

"Th-that's not true." Akihiko exclaimed, "Shinji never liked going to class so he's been held back." He continued trying to comfort the younger boy awkwardly. "Great Akihiko, you just made Ken feel bad." Akihiko told himself mentally.

Everyone was quiet again so Yukari spoke up again, "It's a good thing that Stupei wasn't here when Shinjiro-senpai found out he's been held back a year. If he was here, I'm sure he would make fun of senpai and senpai's gonna beat the crap out of Stupei. That would be fun to see though." She said as Fuuka laughed awkwardly while Akihiko stood up from the chair with his plate in hand and proceeded to the sink to wash it.

"Akihiko-senpai, just leave it there. I'll wash it later with the others. Right now, you have to hurry." Fuuka said. "Yeah" Yukari said.

"Alright, thanks." Akihiko replied heading to the living room where he left his luggage and the others followed after putting their plates on the sink. "Is there something wrong?" Akihiko asked his juniors.

"We want to see you off so we're gonna go with you to the station." Fuuka answered.

"Let's go then." Akihiko said with a smile as the younger occupants of the dorm went outside. Akihiko, with the doorknob in hand, took one last look at the dorm before closing it.

The 6 of them walked quietly to the train station with Aigis holding Koromaru's leash, Ken walking beside Akihiko and Fuuka and Yukari walking ahead of everyone else. Soon, they were already by the entrance of the train station.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye then." Yukari said in a sad tone.

"Yeah" Akihiko said frowning. "You guys take good care of yourselves, especially you Ken." The white haired boy said. "Yeah" was the only thing Ken could say.

"Please remember to eat a proper meal everyday senpai." Fuuka said with a warm smile on her face and Akihiko returned the smile. Akihiko then approached Koromaru messing his fur while smiling at the white dog. Koromaru licked Akihiko's hand in return then barked.

"Koromaru-san is asking when you will come back to visit us…" Aigis said as Akihiko looked at the dog and replied, "As soon as I can." Then Koromaru barked once more.

"That is right Koromaru-san. We will all miss Akihiko-san." Aigis said.

"I'll miss you guys too." Akihiko said with a smile on his face. "Well, I'm going now." He said as he started walking towards the entrance of the train station and stopped beside Yukari for a moment.

"I'm just a call away if you need someone to talk to Yukari." He said to his junior with a smile then continued to walk away. The five remaining occupants of the dorm stood still as they watched their senior disappear from their sight.

"Well…" Fuuka started feeling very awkward. "It's just the 5 of us now." She continued while they started heading back to the dorm in silence. Despite not saying anything, they all knew they were all feeling the same. They were all down because there were only few of them left in the dorm. None of them knew the right words to say to make everyone feel better either. They all stopped in front of the dorm looking at each other while waiting for each other to speak up.

Ken decided to speak up first, "D-does anybody wanna watch Featherman Ranger X?" then Koromaru barked in response.

"Koromaru-san and I will watch Featherman Ranger X with you Ken-kun."Aigis said as the three of them entered the dorm while Fuuka and Yukari stayed outside.

"Say Yukari-chan, do you want to go shopping?" Fuuka asked the taller girl. "Sure." Yukari said trying to smile at the smaller girl.

"But we have to wash the dishes first." Yukari continued still trying to smile. "Yeah" Fuuka said as she returned Yukari's smile and they entered the dorm.

* * *

><p>As Ken, Koromaru and Aigis watched Featherman Ranger X, the dorm's phone started ringing.<p>

"Can somebody please get it?" Yukari shouted from the kitchen as she busied herself with washing the dishes. Ken stood up without taking his eyes off the TV and picked up the phone.

"Hello?" he said. "Hello, may I talk to Aigis?" The woman's voice from the phone said. "Who is this?" Ken asked. "Doctor Kizuki from the Kirijo lab" the woman replied.

"Aigis, phone." Ken told the robot as she stood up quietly and took the phone from Ken.

"Hello?" Aigis answered. "Hello Aigis. It's Doctor Kizuki." The scientist said.

"Is there something wrong doctor?" she asked.

"Not at all but if it's alright with you, I want to invite you here at the lab so I can do a checkup on your system and if possible, update some of your built-in information." Kizuki replied.

"When do you want me there?" the robot asked again. "As soon as you're available." The scientist replied.

"Understood. Please expect me to arrive there late afternoon." Aigis replied and the scientist gladly said goodbye. Aigis put the phone down and headed to the kitchen were Yukari and Fuuka were busy washing the dishes.

"Fuuka-san, Yukari-san…" Aigis started and the two girls looked back at her. "I will be gone for a few days." She continued.

"Huh? Where are you going Aigis?" Fuuka asked the robot with worry. "To the Kirijo lab." Aigis answered straightforwardly.

"Ohhh…" Fuuka said.

"I am leaving now. They are expecting me there this afternoon." Aigis said as she headed for the door. "Alright, be careful Aigis." Yukari said as she resumed washing the dishes. "Will do. Please take care of yourselves." The blond robot said and left the dorm.

"Well, from 11 to 9 to 6 to 5 to now, 4." Yukari joked as she washed the last plate.

"Y-yeah…" Fuuka laughed uncomfortably and took the plate from Yukari, wiping it dry then Ken poked his head into the kitchen.

"Where did Aigis go?" He asked the girls.

"To the Kirijo lab. They probably need her for something." Yukari said.

"Hey Ken-kun, do you want to go shopping with us?" Fuuka asked the boy as he looked at her uncomfortably, "N-n-no. I'll just stay here and watch Featherman Ranger X." Then he immediately went back to watching the cartoon as Koromaru looked at him.

"Don't go in the kitchen Koromaru. They might invite you to go shopping too." He told the white dog and the dog just barked at him turning his attention back to the TV. Unbeknownst to Ken, Yukari and Fuuka heard what he said. The two girls looked at each other and giggled softly.

* * *

><p>"So are you both interested?" Ryoji asked the twins.<p>

"Yeah, we're interested but if we leave this place there won't be anything to seal the Nyx." Minako replied.

"Weren't you listening Minako? He said that only a part of us will leave this place." The older Arisato twin said.

"Yes I was, but it's confusing." The girl said and Ryoji sighed.

"Okay. Let me explain one more time." The black-haired boy said. "I am sending your spirits back so you can gather all the pieces of the Arcana sword. Your bodies and your Personas will stay here to serve as seals for the time being." Ryoji continued.

"But would that really work Ryoji? I mean, aren't our souls the ones that give our Personas and our bodies the strength as the seal?" Minako asked still confused.

"It will work, Minako. However, its effectiveness will work only at a limited time so I will get you back before that time ends, with or without the Arcana sword." Ryoji said calmly.

"Even without the Arcana sword?" Minako asked.

"Yes." Ryoji said sadly then continued. "That's why you have to make use of the time you'll get to collect all pieces."

"Where and how?" Minato asked.

"Remember your social links?" Ryoji asked as he turned his attention to Minato.

"Yeah" Minato answered.

"That's how." Ryoji smiled. "_Where_ is a more complicated matter. It could possibly be where you met these people, a place significant to them or their current location or even in their dream." He continued.

"How long will our time be again?" Minato asked.

"2 months." Ryoji answered.

"So we just find the people we forged social links with then find the piece corresponding to that social link and it's done? Why does that seem all too easy to me?" Minato asked full of doubt.

"Well, you have to fight." Ryoji said.

"How can we fight if we don't have our Personas with us?" Minako asked in a loud voice.

"That's where the people whom you forged your social links with and where your S.E.E.S. friends come in." Ryoji answered.

"How about Pharos?" Minako asked again.

"You'll see him in your dreams again when time comes and when it happens, you can get the piece that he has." Ryoji asked.

"Wait, didn't I forge a social link with you too Ryoji? So how am I..?" Minako asked again.

"I'll stay here tonight. So we can get the first piece for you Minako-san." Ryoji replied.

"Question" Minato said and Ryoji looked at him, "If only our spirits will be released to get the Arcana sword, how can we get the help of the others? Not all people are spiritually aware." Minato said and Ryoji smiled.

"Already taken care of. I talked to your friend, Theodore regarding that." He said as he looked at Minako then stood up and the chair he sat on disappeared.

"I have to go for a while." Ryoji said then continued, "I'll be back tonight so we can retrieve a piece of the sword." Then he disappeared. The twins just stayed silent, both feeling a mixture of nervousness, fear, excitement and happiness.

* * *

><p>Again sorry for any grammatical error I may have failed to correct and sorry if the story is boring. T.T<p>

Sorry if the chapter is extremely long again. I'm still having a hard time making the chapters shorter.

Thanks so much to everyone who read this, the previous chapter and the following chapters.

Hope you guys appreciate the story.

A quick preview of the next chapter - Junpei will be appearing in the next chapter with Chidori.

Also a short disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Persona 3 / Persona 3 Portable.

and - Max, Marcus and Dr. Kizuki are just characters I made up to add to the story. They may or may not be the only characters I add.

Thanks again


	3. Chapter 3 Love, Confusion and India

Chapter 3: Love, Confusion and India

Fuuka and Yukari were laughing as they stepped out from the 2nd shop they've been that noon. Then, Fuuka looked at her watch.

"Whoa, look at the time. It sure flies by fast when you're having fun. We should get something to eat." She said.

"Yeah. Now that you mention it, I'm actually starving." Yukari said, stretching her arms.

"How about we eat at Wakatsu Restaurant?" Fuuka suggested as she watched her friend stretch.

"Sounds good to me, then we can head to the Sweet Shop later." Yukari answered as they climbed the escalator. The two girls were laughing and talking with each other clearly having a good time as they waited for their food to arrive.

Soon, the food arrived and Yukari took her chopsticks then said, "Let's eat!" Fuuka just looked at her friend quietly as she watched her munch down on the food she ordered. Yukari lifted her eyes to look at her friend.

"Is something wrong Fuuka?" She asked.

"Huh? What? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to stare at you." Fuuka said feeling embarrassed.

"Hey, it's okay. So what's wrong?" The taller girl asked again.

"Well, I'm just happy to see you smiling and having fun again Yukari-chan. It's been a while since the last time you smiled and had fun like this and that's before Mi—" Fuuka said then cut herself off. Yukari slightly frowned but smiled again when she noticed her friend feeling guilty.

"Well, I can't exactly move on if I just lock myself up in my room and sit their moping." Yukari said laughing awkwardly and continued, "Come on Fuuka, there's something else that's bothering you."

"Well…" Fuuka hesitated for a moment. "Yesterday while Natsuki-chan and I were in Paulownia mall, I saw Ryoji." The girl in green said, feeling a bit of regret for bringing it up.

"What! Really? Did he say anything to you?" The girl in pink, surprised, asked as she drank some cold juice.

"Yes. Well, he was around only for a bit. He borrowed my phone to call Theo." Fuuka answered as she ate.

"Theo? Who was he again?" Yukari asked as she continued to munch on her food and Fuuka replied, "Remember the man who came to the funeral? The one who wore blue who had white hair and gold eyes? That's Theodore."

"Oohhh.. I didn't know you two were close." Yukari giggled as she teased her friend and Fuuka blushed in return.

"Well, I guess it's something like that." Fuuka said.

"You like him, don't you?" Yukari teased even more and this caught the smaller girl off guard giving away an even harder blush. Fuuka tried to speak but everything that came out of her mouth seemed to be nonsense and Yukari just laughed.

"Anyway, do you know what they talked about and did Ryoji tell you what his business here is?" She asked Fuuka as Fuuka's blush faded.

"No but I wish I knew what they talked about so it wouldn't be so confusing right now." She answered. Yukari put her chopsticks down on her plate then grabbed a napkin to wipe her mouth.

"Then, maybe you should call Theo and ask." Yukari said with a grin. "Maybe I should." Fuuka said as she drank her tea.

* * *

><p>"Good, you're here. I thought I'd have trouble getting to you." Ryoji said as he stood behind Theodore, who was on his knees, wiping Minako's tombstone clean.<p>

"So have you found a suitable container for the Arisato's when they return?" Ryoji asked him as Theodore stood up and turned around to face him.

"Well…" He scrunched his eyebrows as he continued, "I did find something that might be useful but I'm not sure Minato-sama would be happy about it."

"Well, I don't think he'd have a choice besides, it's better than nothing." Ryoji said with a smile then Theodore's phone started ringing.

"Excuse me I have to take this call." Theodore said as he walked away while looking at his phone.

"Is there something wrong Fuuka?" Theodore asked as he made sure that Ryoji wasn't within hearing range.

"Well, I don't think there is Theo. But if it's okay with you and if you have time, could you please meet me at the Shrine? I'm on my way there now." Fuuka said on the other end.

"Of course, I'll be on my way shortly." Theodore replied immediately.

"Alright, thanks." Fuuka said and hung up. Theodore walked back to Ryoji who was looking at the Arisato twins' grave quietly, in deep thought. Theodore fake coughed to get the man's attention which he successfully did as Ryoji turned around.

"I'm afraid I have to go now. I have business to attend to elsewhere." Theodore said with his eyes looking away giving Ryoji the hint that he was lying.

"I understand. I'm just here to let you know that I'm going to send them back tomorrow. Should any problem arise, I'll be here tonight at 11." Ryoji replied then started walking away and looked back at Theodore.

"Another thing, tell Fuuka I said hi." Ryoji said with a smile, earning a blush from the older man and he continued to walk away.

* * *

><p>"So? What did he say?" Yukari asked as she and Fuuka walked towards the Shrine.<p>

"He agreed to meet me there. He said he's on his way." Fuuka replied fixing her hold on her shopping bags.

"Wait, we bought some meat and fish right?" Yukari asked while smiling then Fuuka gasped upon Yukari's reminder and hurriedly took her phone from her purse, almost dropping her shopping bags.

"I'll just tell Theo to meet me some other time." She said as she started looking for Theodore's number but Yukari stopped her.

"Don't worry about, Fuuka. I'll just take the meat and fish with me and go ahead. I'm tired anyway." The brown haired girl said with a smile.

"But—" Fuuka tried to speak as Yukari took the bag with food in it.

"Don't worry about it. Well, enjoy! See you later Fuuka!" Yukari said as she giggled and winked at Fuuka and started running away.

"O-okay..." Fuuka said as if Yukari can still hear her. Fuuka sighed and continued her walk to the Shrine. Fifteen minutes later, she arrived at the bottom of the steps to the Shrine and stopped as she looked at the tall man standing who stopped in front of her as well.

"H-hi Theo…" She said nervously. "F-fuuka, hi..." Theodore said jumping a little as he blushed. Theodore coughed a bit trying to brush off his nervousness.

"My, you have so many bags. Please let me carry those for you." He said without looking at the younger girl and reached out his hand. Fuuka didn't want to make Theodore carry her bags but she didn't want to embarrass him either so she gave him the bags.

"Shall we go upstairs now?" Theodore asked holding the bags in one hand while reaching the other to Fuuka without looking at her. Fuuka blushed as she gave her hand to Theodore and they climbed the stairs to the Shrine, hand in hand, blushing.

* * *

><p>"Ah~ this is the life! The sun's so warm and nice and I can't wait for the food to come" Junpei said cheerfully as he sat on a chair outside a restaurant.<p>

"Don't you think you ordered too much Junpei?" Chidori asked Junpei as she sat next to him.

"There's no such thing as too much food!" The guy said as he fixed his cap. Junpei cheered on again catching the attention of people around them then he stared at Chidori.

"Please don't stare at me Junpei." The girl said then Junpei said without taking his eyes off his girlfriend, "You can't blame me. I just can't get enough of the most beautiful sight in India right now." He said as Chidori grumbled something under her breath then about 4 trays of food came.

"Alright! Chidorita, let's eat!" Junpei shouted on top of his voice as he started eating.

"Don't call me that." Chidori said as she started eating her food. After they finished eating they left the restaurant and started walking around the area. It was very crowded so they walked as close to each other as they can.

"So where do you want to go Chidorita?" Junpei asked then Chidori looked around and saw the park entrance, "There…" She said pointing towards the park.

"Okay, let's go." Junpei walked ahead of the redhead girl as he held her hand firmly. After a while, they reached the park. It was quiet and they decided to sit on a bench. Junpei sighed feeling slightly tired after walking in the crowd, "Wow, there's so much people out there eh?" he laughed a little as Chidori quietly sat next to him looking at him seriously.

Junpei stopped laughing and looked at Chidori, "What's the matter? Did I say something wrong?" he asked.

"How are you feeling Junpei?" Chidori asked then the boy with the goatee flashed a big grin as he said, "Great!"

"I mean, about your best friends' deaths. How are you feeling about that now?" Chidori asked again still looking straight at Junpei as his smile slowly faded.

"Why are you asking me that now?" he asked her then she replied, "Because I want to know if you're feeling any better."

Junpei frowned looking down on the ground, "I'd rather not talk about it."

"But—" Chidori was about to say something else when Junpei looked her in the eyes, full of pain, "Please…" after seeing the way Junpei's eyes looked, Chidori didn't continue with what she was trying to say.

After staring at her, Junpei looked at the ground again staying silent and motionless as Chidori just watched him. She slowly moved closer to him and placed one of her hands on his shoulder. Junpei put one of his hands on top of Chidori's hand while using the other to pull his cap down a bit more to hide his face as he continued to stare at the ground quietly.

* * *

><p>"Well this is my stop." The blond ganguro said to the tall man in red pea coat.<p>

"Tch. Like I care." The man answered in an annoyed, impatient tone.

"Yeah, nice meeting you too." The girl said getting annoyed as she walked out of the train. She looked back at the man then heard her phone ringing. She took the phone out and looked at the caller ID. "It's Fuuka." She said and answered the phone.

"Hey Fuuka, I just got off the train and I'm almost home. Is there anything wrong?" She asked.

"Natsuki, what am I supposed to do?" Fuuka said, sounding panicky.

"Fuuka, calm down. What's wrong? What happened?" Natsuki asked worriedly.

"Well Yukari-chan and I went shopping earlier and she told me to call this guy to meet us because we needed to ask him questions. Then Yukari left me. I've never really been alone with a guy before. Well, maybe except for Akihiko-senpai. But this guy is different." Fuuka said still panicking. She waited for her best friend to speak but all she heard was laughter.

"Fuuka, that means you like the guy. Good for you." The blond girl said cheerfully.

"T-that's not true!" Fuuka said defensively, blushing.

After a few more seconds of laughing, Natsuki finally stopped and spoke seriously, "Just be yourself, Fuuka. You don't have to do anything out of character. Well, I better go now. Introduce the lucky guy to me soon, okay?"

"I told you Natsuki, I don't like him the way you think I do." Fuuka said but Natsuki had already hung up. Natsuki looked at her phone with a smile and put it back in her purse.

"I'm so happy for you, Fuuka." She said and started walking.

* * *

><p>Yukari sighed as she slowed down holding her bags, feeling tired. She stopped for a while and looked up in the sky.<p>

"Hey Minato, Minako, I bet you saw that. Fuuka's interested in your friend." She said trying to smile. "Let's work together and help her. Okay?" She said still looking at the sky and smiling. Yukari started walking when her phone rang. She put down her bags and got the phone from her purse. "Hello?" She answered.

"Hey Yuka-tan~" Junpei shouted on the other end of the line almost making Yukari throw her phone in surprise.

"Keep it down Stupei!" Yukari shouted back.

"Stop calling me that!" Junpei yelled back.

"I said stop shouting!" Yukari yelled back. Yukari noticed the people around staring at her and she felt a blush settle in due to embarrassment so she started to talk softly.

"What do you want Stupei?" She asked in a weak voice as she picked up the bags using her free hand and started walking.

"Just checking in on you guys. How's everybody doing?" Junpei replied.

"Well Mitsuru-senpai left for London yesterday. Akihiko-senpai went to Tokyo this morning and Shinjiro-senpai left before we got up. Aigis went to the Kirijo lab. Ken and Koromaru's at the dorm and Fuuka's on a date." Yukari replied lazily.

"Yeah, yeah. I already know Mitsuru-senpai and Akihiko-senpai are leaving. Where did Shinjiro-senpai go? And when is he going back? And did I hear you right? Fuuka's on a date?" Junpei asked question, after question. Yukari regretted that she mentioned these to Junpei instead of just saying everybody's fine.

"Who knows where Shinjiro-senpai is or when he'll be back? He doesn't open up to any of us. Not even Akihiko-senpai." The girl replied.

"Well he opened up to Mina-tan." Junpei pointed out and Yukari snorted, "Well Minako's no longer with us now, isn't she?" And Junpei didn't speak for a while.

This made the two feel awkward until Junpei decided to speak up, "So… Is Fuuka really on a date?" He asked.

"Well, sort of. We were meeting that Theo guy at the Shrine but I left her. So it's a like a date I guess." Yukari replied and asked, "How's Chidori?"

"Oh, she's doing great!" Junpei answered energetically.

"Oh good, she's still alive." Yukari snorted.

"Whoa, whoa, what did you mean by that? And how come you're only asking about how she's doing but you're not asking me how I'm doing?" Junpei complained with an annoyed tone and he heard Yukari laugh.

"Well why should I care about you? I'm more concerned about Chidori because I highly doubt there's any person in the world that can stand being alone with you for too long. It's actually a wonder how she's still alive after more than a month." Yukari said insulting him even more.

"Well she came back from the dead after giving her life to me didn't she? So I'm sure it's not that hard for her to be around me a lot." Junpei replied softly making sure Chidori didn't hear him not actually realizing that Yukari just insulted him then, "Wait a minute! Did you just insult me?" Junpei asked loudly with a more annoyed tone and he heard Yukari laugh harder and she hung up.

"He-hello? Yukari? Hello?" Junpei asked.

Yukari put her phone back in her purse as she laugh hard. In the back of her mind, the very, _very_ back, that is, she was thankful that Junpei called her. This was the first time since the death of the twins that she laughed this hard but she would never let Junpei know that. Without noticing it, Yukari was already in front of the dorm and the door opened. Koromaru barked happily and jumped on Yukari knocking her over and making her drop the bags all over the place.

"Hey Koro-chan!" Yukari smiled at the dog as it got off Yukari. Ken followed with Koromaru's leash in hand.

"Y-yukari-san! I'm so sorry." Ken apologized bowing to the older girl as he helped Yukari up.

"No, it's okay Ken." Yukari said smiling. Then the two picked the bags up and went inside. Ken set the bags down on the living room along with the other bags as Yukari headed to the kitchen to put the food in the fridge.

Yukari peeked out from the kitchen, "Aren't you going to take Koromaru for a walk?" she asked the boy.

"Oh yeah!" Ken said and he pulled Koromaru closer to him putting the leash around his neck.

"Are you having dinner here?" Yukari asked.

"Of course!" Ken replied with a smile followed by a bark from Koromaru.

"Okay. I'll prepare something delicious for you too Koro-chan." The teen said with a smile and continued unloading the bags of food.

"We're going out now." Ken said loudly as he closed the door behind him. Yukari stopped for a moment and sighed when she heard the door close.

* * *

><p>Almost an hour of walking and running, Ken and Koromaru arrived at the entrance of the cemetery. Ken was breathing heavily as they stopped by the gate while Koromaru looked at him. Ken looked at his watch noticing it was already 5pm.<p>

"Sorry if we took a while Koromaru, we can't exactly ride the train. They don't allow dogs there. And I don't have enough money for a cab." Ken said to Koromaru in between breaths. After a while, Ken finally caught his breath.

"Shall we go in now?" He asked the white dog who barked in response. After a few more minutes of walking, the pair arrived in there destination. Ken removed Koromaru's leash so he can run around and play however, Koromaru just approached the space between the twins' graves and lied there quietly.

"You miss them too, right Koromaru-san?" the young boy asked but got no response from the dog. He sat down by the grave quietly and slowly, his eyes felt heavier. Soon, he fell asleep.

* * *

><p>"Huh, it's morning already? Did I fall asleep in the cemetery?" He asked while looking around.<p>

"M-minako-san?" Ken gasped in surprise seeing his former leader from a distance standing and staring at him.

"Minako-san!" He called out but the girl didn't answer back. Ken started running as fast as he could towards the girl but the further he ran, the further his goal was.

"Minako-san, wait for me!" Ken shouted again then halted when he saw a dark, scary grin on Minako's face and slowly, she started to transform into a familiar shadow. The one they fought on top of Tartarus, the one also known as Ryoji Mochizuki. Ken tried to look for anything he can use as a weapon but everything around him turned into darkness. Ken closed his eyes shut and braced himself as the Shadow made its way to attack him but the attack never came. Slowly, Ken opened his eyes and to his surprise, there she was, covering him and protecting him from the attack.

"A-are you okay Ken?" The girl asked as she removed her arms around him Ken nodded still staring at Minako, speechless.

"Thanks Ryoji." Minako said as she stood up.

Hearing the name, Ken turned to face the shadow again and was in for an even bigger surprise. Ryoji Mochizuki, the guy whom he thought attempted to attack him was there in front of them, a sickle in hand, trying to hold the shadow back. Ken wanted to apologize to Ryoji for thinking it was him who tried to attack him but knew this wasn't the time for that. They had to get rid of the shadow somehow. Ryoji tried to attack the shadow but it disappeared before he could.

"Ken, your arm… It's bleeding." Minako said grabbing the boy's arm gently. Ryoji put the sickle down on the ground and ripped a part of his scarf. Then, he wrapped it around the younger boy's arm then he picked up the sickle once again.

"Minako… That shadow won't be gone for long." He said seriously looking at Minako and Minako nodded. She picked up the weapon she was very accustomed to, a naginata and turned to Ken.

"Ken, you're not supposed to be here. You have to leave now." She said.

"But—" before Ken can speak up, a blinding light hit his face making him close his eyes.

* * *

><p>Ken opened his eyes and he was back in the cemetery and it was already darker than when they got there. He saw a car by the side of the road and Koromaru was looking at him with concern.<p>

"I guess I was dreaming, huh?" He said as he patted the dog's head. Then, he saw a man with long nose step out of the car with 2 girls both in blue uniform with white hair and golden eyes.

"Forgive us if we woke you up, child." He said with an eerie grin that made the hairs on the back of Ken's neck stand up.

"Elizabeth, will you please get the flowers for our dear guests?" He said looking at the younger woman who nodded and got something from the car.

"You must be one of Minako and Minato's friends." The older woman said to Ken as they approached. Ken felt somewhat uncomfortable with the presence of the three and backed away. Koromaru was staring at the three a bit more open than the boy.

"Don't be afraid. We too, are friends of the Arisato's." The man with the long nose said with the eerie grin still on his face. Soon, the girl whom he called Elizabeth came with 2 baskets of flowers.

"Ahh… Here we are! A basket of flowers for Minako and a basket of flowers for Minato, this should bring them happiness!" The man said as Elizabeth lay the flowers on each grave.

After setting the flowers on the grave, Elizabeth turned to Ken and gave him a sweet smile. She bent a little over Ken and reached her hand out, "My name's Elizabeth. The woman over there is my sister Margaret and that man is our master." Ken blushes a little when he saw the sweet smile on the woman's face and he shook the woman's hand.

"Ken Amada." He said then they heard Koromaru bark. "That's Koromaru." He continued.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Ken and you too Koromaru." Elizabeth said with a gentle smile.

"My name is Igor." Igor said as he approached Ken with a grin. Ken bowed his head still feeling uncomfortable with Igor.

"It's quite late. A child like you shouldn't be walking alone." Margaret said looking at him. Ken was speechless.

"Why don't you let us give you a ride home?" Igor offered.

"N-no. It's okay. I have Koromaru with me and our home's not that far from here." Ken replied immediately.

"Don't be afraid of us, you can trust us. Even your dog trusts us." Margaret said and patted the dog's head. Koromaru licked the woman's hand in return. "Besides, I believe the dorm you're staying in is about 30-40 minutes from here if you walk." She continued.

"I don't want to trouble you guys especially if it's not on the way to your destination." Ken said humbly and more comfortably now after realizing that the three posed no threat to him.

"Don't worry about it. We're actually just looking for our brother before we decided to drop by and we haven't found him yet so we're still going around." Margaret said with somewhat an annoyed tone.

After a few more convincing from the trio and even Koromaru, Ken finally agreed. Ken and Koromaru got in the car with the three mysterious people and they left the cemetery.

* * *

><p>A blinding light flashed in the entire area and Ryoji appeared.<p>

"Did you get it?" Minato asked.

"I'm afraid not. We weren't prepared enough when we got there." Ryoji said with a frown touching the wound on his shoulder lightly.

"Ryoji-kun…" Minako said with concern. Ryoji touched the female statue's cheek.

"Don't worry. This is nothing. It's just a scratch." He said with a smile.

"How the heck are we supposed to get on with our mission if you didn't get it? We have a very limited time, in case you forgot." Minato asked in an annoyed tone and Minako apologized.

"Why was Ken there?" Minako asked after repeatedly apologizing.

"Wait. Ken?" Minato asked in surprise.

"Yeah…" Minako answered.

"I honestly don't know. It came to me as a surprise too." Ryoji frowned after his reply.

"But he's going to be okay. Right Ryoji-kun?" Minako asked trying to smile.

"Of course, it was just a scratch on his arm." Ryoji replied with a small smile. "You two should rest for now. Minako-san needs to be prepared for tomorrow's mission." He said and the twins just agreed with him.

"Well, I'll leave now. I have to take care of this." Ryoji said with a chuckle and left the twins to rest.

Soon, Ryoji was back in that black room filled with nothing but darkness and emptiness. He slowly took all of his clothes off and stared at the wound for a while. He snapped his fingers and the room turned into a bathroom. He opened the door to the shower and opened the warm water feeling it hit the wound and stared at the ground as he washed the wound quietly.

* * *

><p>"Well, here we are." The white haired man said to the smaller girl with a blush on his cheeks.<p>

"Thanks for walking me back Theo." Fuuka said.

"O-of course!" Theodore replied turning even redder.

The two fell silent in front of the dorm and stared at each other blushing. Theodore felt his heartbeat go faster and without realizing it, he was slowly leaning towards Fuuka who just stood still. The two were a few inches away from each other when they both closed their eyes closing in on each other. Both their heartbeats went faster and louder that they could practically hear each other's heartbeats.

They were getting closer and closer to each other when they hear a door open and both of them jumped in surprise. They both turned and saw Ken, blushing and looking away while Koromaru got off the car staring at the pair.

"There you are Theo. We've been looking all over for you." Margaret said with an annoyed tone while Elizabeth was looking away and blushing, much like Ken was.

"I-I'm sorry." Theodore said bowing and blushing.

"Shall we get going then? Our master is tired." Margaret said crudely.

"O-of course!" Theodore said and turned to Fuuka still blushing.

"Well, I have to go now. If something's up, you know how to contact me." He said then hurriedly got on the car. The car sped off while Fuuka just stood there, extremely embarrassed. Ken got on the steps to the front door and opened it. Koromaru ran inside while Ken turned to Fuuka.

"A-are you alright Fuuka-san?" He asked the girl who snapped back to reality.

"Huh? Y-yeah. I'm sorry about that." She said trying to smile.

"Let me help you with your bags." Ken said as he picked up all the bags then Fuuka called his attention. "Ken-kun…"

"Huh? Is something wrong Fuuka-san?" He turned to the girl.

"What happened to your arm?" She asked, the embarrassment replaced by worry. Upon hearing her question, Ken looked at his arm and was shocked. The same arm that was wounded in his dream was bleeding and it was covered with what seems to be a yellow cloth.

"I-it's nothing. I just hit something sharp. I'll fix it later." Ken said hurriedly and went inside closing the door right before Fuuka could enter.

* * *

><p>Ken placed all the bags down in the living room as quickly as possible and said, "I'm taking a shower, you don't have to wait for me for dinner." Then ran upstairs and headed to his room, locking the door behind him. He sighed as he leaned on the door, touching his wound. Slowly, Ken removed the yellow cloth on his arm and looked at the blood on his left arm.<p>

"I know it was all a dream, but how?" Ken asked himself as he held the wound lightly, writhing in pain as he did so. Then he looked at the yellow cloth reminiscent of Ryoji's scarf. With the ripped cloth in hand, he took his towel and some clean clothes and went to the bathroom to take his shower, cleaning the wound thoroughly.

* * *

><p>"Ouch." Fuuka said weakly as she rubbed the tip of her nose then her forehead and opened the door.<p>

"Oh good, you're home. Shall we eat?" Yukari greeted as she scratched Koromaru's ear.

"Yeah." Fuuka said as she kept rubbing the tip of her nose and followed Yukari and Koromaru to the kitchen. "Where's Ken-kun?" Fuuka asked looking around.

"He's taking a shower. He said he'll follow." Yukari replied as she washed her hands then filled Koromaru's bowl with food. She set the food down the floor for Koromaru as she took two plates and put food in it. Then she headed for the table where Fuuka was sitting.

"So, what did Theo say?" Yukari asked as she looked at her friend who kept rubbing her nose.

"Well everything he said didn't make sense so I don't think it's worth talking about." Fuuka said as she finally stopped rubbing her nose.

"What do you mean?" Yukari looked up at her after eating some curry and rice.

"Well he said that Ryoji wanted to talk to him because he was looking for containers." Fuuka said as she took a spoonful of the curry and ate it.

"Containers for what?" Yukari asked curiously.

"He didn't say. Whenever I asked him, he'd change the subject." Fuuka said with a frown and Yukari finished chewing her food before sighing then said, "Okay, that doesn't make sense at all. It's weird, alright." Fuuka nodded as she took a spoonful of her food.

Yukari sighed again then said, "Honestly, I'm scared of the thought that he's been around. The last time he was here, the world was about to end. We were lucky Minato and Minako saved all of us." She frowned at her last sentence and Fuuka just remained silent.

Every time the Arisato twins' names were mentioned around Yukari, the atmosphere gets heavy and Fuuka always had no idea what to say to make her feel better. The two didn't speak after this and just continued to eat their meals in silence with only the sound of Koromaru drinking water from his bowl every now and then can be heard.

"Yukari-chan…" Fuuka called out her friend softly. "Did you notice Ken-kun's arm bleeding when he entered the dorm?" She asked.

"Huh? No, why? What happened to him?" Yukari asked her friend starting to get concerned.

"I don't know what happened. I just noticed it when he was in the front door helping me with the bags. I'm worried about him. He may be in trouble." Fuuka said.

"I'm not. I told you, it's nothing. It's just a scratch." Ken said surprising the girls as he entered the kitchen, wearing a jacket to cover up the wound.

"But Ken-kun, a scratch won't bleed that much. Let us take a look at it." Fuuka said.

"Yeah, then I'll heal it." Yukari said nodding at Fuuka's suggestion.

"N-no! I'm fine. You don't have to take care of me. I can take care of myself." Ken said with a frown and the two girls just sighed as he sat next to Fuuka and started eating his dinner quietly.

* * *

><p>Mitsuru was combing her hair while sitting on her dresser when she heard a knock on her door. "Hmm?" She looked at the door, setting her brush down on the table. The redhead then headed for the door and opened it.<p>

"Good morning Ms. Kirijo. I hope I'm not disturbing anything important." Max said.

"Not at all, please come in." Mitsuru said confidently, stepping aside to give him space to enter. The man looked around the room, checking it.

"I see you received the flowers Mr. Lockheart has sent." He said turning to Mitsuru.

"Yes. They're beautiful." Mitsuru said with a smile as she closed the door.

"I hope the accommodation in this hotel is to your liking." He said.

"Yes. It is exactly as I have expected." Mitsuru said.

"That's good to hear. Mr. Lockheart sent me to check on you and to send his apologies. He cannot meet you today." He said.

"I see." Mitsuru said, looking disappointed. Max noticed the slight disappointment on the lady's face and felt a bit guilty.

Then he said, "If you'd allow me Miss Kirijo, I will accompany you today wherever you please." Then the smile on Mitsuru's face returned.

"That sounds good." She replied as she looked at her watch.

"It's almost lunch time. Shall we grab something to eat?" Mitsuru asked. "Yes, we should." The man replied.

"Can you suggest a good place to eat?" Mitsuru asked looking at the man then he answered with a smile, "I know the perfect place."

* * *

><p>"I'm so tired!" Junpei exclaimed as he sat down on the couch.<p>

"Well we went to so many places today and there were too many people too." Chidori said as she looked at her boyfriend.

"Yeah, but you have to admit, it was a fun day." Junpei said cheerfully then his phone rang and Junpei just looked at it.

"Aren't you going to answer that? It might be Yukari again." Chidori said, jealous.

"Wh-what? Come on Chidorita! You shouldn't be jealous of Yuka-tan. I don't even think she's a girl." Junpei said jokingly.

"Please stop calling me Chidorita. And Junpei, answer the phone." Chidori replied almost coldly.

"Just leave it." Junpei said as he lied down on the couch lazily, putting his cap over his face.

"It's annoying." Chidori said staring at the guy coldly. Then, the boy with the goatee lifted the cap and said jokingly, "Answer it then." Chidori was oblivious to this and took it seriously. She picked the phone from the table and answered it.

"Hello who is this?" she said in a monotone.

"W-w-wait! I was joking Chidori!" Junpei said panicking and almost falling off the couch.

"This is Chidori, Junpei's girlfriend. It's a pleasure to meet you too." Chidori said looking at Junpei with a teasing smirk as Junpei made his way to Chidori and his phone. Chidori put her hand on the phone.

Chidori whispered something to Junpei which made his eyes widen. He quickly took the phone from Chidori and ran outside as Chidori sat on a chair, laughing lightly.

* * *

><p>Junpei closed the door behind him loudly and leaned on the door, sighing.<p>

"Why did you call old man?" He asked.

"Is that any way to greet your father?" The voice from the other end asked.

"Come on dad just tell me what you want." Junpei said a bit annoyed.

"I didn't know you had a girlfriend. When are you going to introduce her to me?" Junpei's dad said teasingly.

"Dad!" Junpei said getting embarrassed and annoyed.

"Okay, okay. I'm just wondering when you're going back to Japan." Junpei's dad asked more seriously this time.

"I don't know. Why?" Junpei asked.

"Can't your old man miss you and want to see you?" the dad asked.

"I visited you before I left, remember?" Junpei replied.

"Come on Junpei. And next time, don't forget to bring your girlfriend when you come home so I can meet her in person." Junpei's dad said again.

"Fine, when we get back we'll visit you." Junpei said sighing heavily then he hung up. He put his phone back in his pocket as he went back inside.

As he entered the room, he found Chidori still sitting on the chair with her head and arms resting on the table. Junpei tapped her arm softly but the sleeping girl only moved her head a little. Junpei smiled and gently carried Chidori to her bed. After laying her in her bed, Junpei walked out of the room and sat on a chair in the hallway of the hotel.

* * *

><p>Junpei took his phone out and quietly stared at it for a while. Moments that seemed like forever later, he dialed a number and waited for someone to answer.<p>

"Paulownia Mall Police Station." The male voice on the phone answered.

"Can I talk to Officer Kurosawa?" Junpei asked and the male voice quickly replied, "Hold on."

After a few minutes, "Who is this?" The male voice asked again. "Junpei Iori" was Junpei's quick response and was put on hold again. Junpei sighed and waited patiently.

"Kurosawa speaking." Officer Kurosawa said then Junpei quickly spoke up.

"Hey Officer Kurosawa, it's me, Junpei."

"Junpei, how may I help you?" Kurosawa replied.

"Have you caught him yet?" Junpei asked straight out.

"I'm afraid not." The police answered.

Junpei frowned and felt disappointed, "Do you have any leads?"

"No, but don't worry. We're working hard to locate and apprehend him." Kurosawa replied hoping to reassure the high school boy.

"I see. Well, if you have any updates, please let me know. This is my temporary number." Junpei said still disappointed.

"I will. Anything else I can help you with?" Kurosawa asked.

"No, that's all." Junpei answered.

"Okay. Say hi to the girl for me." Kurosawa said and hung up. Junpei stared at his phone for a while again then put it back in his pocket. Junpei sighed as he leaned back on the chair and started to recall how he and his girlfriend ended up in India.

* * *

><p><em>It was 2 weeks shy of 2 months ago, Junpei, dressed in a black suit, was visiting his girlfriend in the hospital who was still recovering at the time. <em>

_"You look good in a suit. You look good without your cap on too." Chidori said as she continued sketching the fresh flowers on a vase. _

_"Thanks, I guess." Junpei said glumly while sitting on a chair. Chidori stopped her drawing for a while to look at him. _

_"I appreciate your compliment Chidori. I just wish that I'm not wearing this right now because I'm going to a funeral." Junpei said with a frustrated, sad, confusing look that Chidori couldn't understand as he looked at his watch. _

_"Well, I have to go now. I'll see you later." Junpei said as he stood up. Before Chidori could say anything more, Junpei had already left the room. _

* * *

><p><em>Chidori sighed as she looked around the room. She put her pencil and sketchbook down and stood up from the bed and headed for the bathroom. <em>

_While washing her hands, she heard something drop from outside. Somehow, Chidori felt something wasn't right and slowly turned the knob of the bathroom door. As she stepped out, there he was, sitting on the bed looking at Chidori's sketches. _

_"It's been a while." The man said with a smirk. _

_"You..." Chidori said blankly. For some reason, she was mad at him but didn't know why because she doesn't know him. She doesn't recognize him yet he seems so familiar. She was confused._

_"These drawings, they're colorful and full of life." The man paused for a while as he looked through the pages, his smirk disappearing. _

_"They're ugly." Then he looked at the redhead girl and stood up slowly approaching Chidori while still scanning through the pages of the sketchbook. _

_"What happened to your creativity? Where's the blood, the death, the misery, the anger?" Chidori was feeling very uncomfortable and stepped back while the man came closer to her._

_"Stay away from me." Chidori said, her voice trembling. Then, the man stopped a few inches away from her and looked closely at the sketchbook and raised it to show Chidori the picture. _

_"It's this boy's fault. Isn't it?" Chidori's eyes widened as she watched the man rip the page off the sketchbook. Then he dropped the sketchbook and slowly tore her sketch of Junpei. _

_"I'll take care of him later. For now," the man paused and extended his hand to Chidori. "Come with me. Let's go back to where we truly belong. I'll help you regain what you have lost."_

_"No! Stay away from me!"Chidori screamed on top of her lungs. The man quickly grabbed her and covered her mouth and was about to carry her out of the room when hospital staff burst into the room. _

_"Tch. I'll get you next time." The man said as he let go of Chidori and quickly left through the window. _

_One of the nurses approached Chidori and asked her, "Are you alright miss?" Chidori just nodded. "Do you know who that man was?" The nurse asked as she helped Chidori pick up the sketchbook and the torn pieces of her sketch. Chidori, unable to talk just shook her head. _

_"Nurse…" A doctor called the nurse who quickly approached him. "Stay with the girl." He said and the nurse nodded as the other staff left the room. _

_"Let's put you back to bed." The nurse said to Chidori as the doctor gave her one last look and left the room. _

_Outside the said room, "Guard her." The doctor told two men in black suit and left._

* * *

><p><em>A typical Japanese funeral involves cremating the dead person's body before it's buried in a grave, the ashes are scattered at sea or in rare cases, space. However, in the twins' case, the S.E.E.S. members wanted the twins to be buried intact. Of course this was more expensive and required a lot of work. For many, this would be a problem but not for Mitsuru. She managed to take care of everything needed for the funeral with ease and today was the set date for it.<em>

_Mitsuru looked around, there were many that came. Mostly from their school but the French foreign exchange student stood out, he was visibly upset. Even more than Akihiko was but Mitsuru knew better. She knew Akihiko was just holding himself back. Speaking of which, he was busy trying to calm their youngest member who was crying like any child would if they lost someone they cared about. Yukari was crying her eyes out as well while Fuuka tried to console her. Aigis was standing next to a sad Koromaru. She couldn't cry but Mitsuru knew Aigis was sad too like them. Mitsuru also noticed an old monk among the crowd, along with an old couple, the ones she saw in that store in Iwatodai. She looked around again and noticed the four mysterious people she met a few days ago who introduced themselves as friends of the Arisato's. Even Officer Kurosawa was there paying his respects. Everyone was, hold on. Mitsuru looked around to try to find the tallest member of S.E.E.S. Mitsuru lightly tapped the boy standing next to her on the shoulder. _

_"Iori, have you seen Aragaki?" She asked and Junpei looked at her. _

_"No, but knowing him, he's just somewhere around here." Junpei said and noticed Fuuka was about to cry too so he quietly approached the two upset girls. Mitsuru quietly left to look for Shinji and found him behind a tree two blocks from where the twins were to be buried. _

_"There you are." Mitsuru said as she looked at the tall man who was covering his face with his beanie. "It's good that you decided to wear a suit but it would have been better if you got rid of that beanie even just for today." She said and all she heard from the man was a "tch" and a weak sniffle. _

_"Aragaki, are you—" she hesitated for a moment then continued, "crying?" _

_"Shut up." Shinjiro said with an annoyed tone as he pulled his beanie lower. Mitsuru stayed silent for a while and heard more sniffles from the man. _

_"Stupid, troublesome brat. I'm not allowed to die but she is. Stupid, stupid brat." Shinjiro said frustrated and Mitsuru saw the tears she didn't see earlier, falling down his cheeks as the man's beanie fell on the ground. He immediately turned around trying to hide his face and to save himself from the embarrassment of someone seeing him cry. _

_Mitsuru did not know what to say but she knew what she had to do. She wrapped her arms gently around his waist and softly said, "I really don't know what to say about that however, I'm sure she wouldn't want to see you like this." _

_Surprisingly, Shinji didn't resist Mitsuru wrapping her arms around him. He actually relaxed a little, finally letting go of his bottled up feelings. A few minutes later, he regained his composure and turned to face the head of the Kirijo Company. _

_"Thanks. But don't tell anybody about this." He said as he picked up his beanie. _

_Mitsuru just smiled confidently, "Of course." _

_Then her phone rang. "Mitsuru speaking." She answered. _

__"What? Are you sure?" Mitsuru asked with a worried tone while Shinjiro looked at her as he wiped the dirt off his beanie. "Okay, I'll be there after the funeral." Mitsuru said and hung up. "Let's rejoin the others." Mitsuru suggested and Shinjiro just nodded as he pulled his beanie down to cover his eyes.__

* * *

><p><em>2 hours later, the funeral finished and Mitsuru left the cemetery in a hurry. Meanwhile the rest of S.E.E.S. returned to the dorm quietly. When they got back to the dorm Ken went up to his room while the others rested on the living room. <em>

_"Where's Mitsuru?" Akihiko asked. The others, sans Shinjiro, looked at each other. This was the first time they noticed that the girl wasn't around. _

_Fuuka was the one who answered, "I don't know senpai. She was with us during the funeral, that I'm sure of." _

_"She's probably off somewhere taking care of business." Junpei suggested seriously and the others just agreed. _

_"I'm going up to my room." Yukari said palely. "I'll accompany you." Fuuka said and Yukari immediately refused. Yukari insisted she's okay so Fuuka just sighed. _

_"I thought you'll go straight to the hospital after the funeral?" Akihiko asked looking at Junpei. _

_"Yeah, I was but I'm just not feeling too good right now. I'll just visit her tomorrow." Junpei replied. After this, they just sat in silence in the living room. An hour later, the front door opened and in comes the Kirijo head. _

_"Is everyone here?" She asked and Fuuka nodded. "I need to talk to everyone. I'll meet you in the meeting room in 10 minutes." She said as she walked past them and went upstairs._

* * *

><p><em>10 minutes later, everyone was seated in the meeting room curious as to why they were summoned here and at the same time, nervous. They were not saying it loudly but they all felt that something wasn't right. Mitsuru enters the meeting room with a straight face. She looked at everyone, most of them still obviously upset. <em>

_"I can't talk to everyone if you're still in this state." Mitsuru paused and sighed. "We all have to be strong. The Arisato's gave their lives up to give us another chance in life. We have to be strong and to show them that we appreciate what they've done for us." Mitsuru looked at the people in front of her._

_They all stayed silent and Ken was the first to speak. "Mitsuru-san's right. We should be strong for Minako-san and Minato-san." He said and smiled. _

_"It would be hard but we can at least try." Akihiko followed. _

_"Yes." Aigis agreed. _

_"Minato and Minako would probably kick me in the ass if they see me moping until now." Junpei said then grinned. Mitsuru smiled to see them becoming more positive. _

_"Good, we need the strength with what I'm about to tell you next." Mitsuru said with her smile fading. Upon hearing this, everybody became serious again. _

_"What's the big fuss?" Shinji asked. _

_"It's about Chidori." Mitsuru said looking at Junpei then quickly followed, "It probably involves all of us as well." _

_Akihiko was the first one this to speak this time, "What do you mean?" _

_"Someone attempted to kidnap her." Mitsuru said straight out. _

_"WHAT?" Junpei asked and was about to freak out when Yukari pulled him back down to his chair. _

_"Calm down Stupei." She said. _

_"Stop calling me that!" Junpei replied with an annoyed tone and Mitsuru coughed to catch their attention. "As I was saying, someone attempted to kidnap Chidori earlier." _

_"What does that have to do with us?" Akihiko asked and Mitsuru pulled out a piece of paper from a folder she had when she got home. _

_"This was the man that tried to kidnap her." She said as she showed them the paper. The S.E.E.S. members all looked in surprise. _

_"Mitsuru-senpai isn't that… Takaya?" Fuuka asked in a worried manner and Mitsuru simply nodded. _

_"I thought he died in Tartarus the night we went there to fight the Nyx?" Yukari asked. _

_"I thought so too but apparently, he's still alive and judging by the way Chidori described him, he remembers everything." Mitsuru said. _

_"Does Chidori remember him?" Junpei asked hesitatingly. Mitsuru shook her head and Junpei sighed in relief, sort of. _

_"He may be planning to get back at us for foiling his plans, especially you Iori. Given that he tore a sketch of you from Chidori's sketchbook." Mitsuru said looking at Junpei and Junpei shivered at the thought. _

_Mitsuru looked at each of them and said, "The people from the hospital have alerted the Police about him and I have some men from the Kirijo group to help them apprehend Takaya." She continued, "You all know how persistent Takaya is and what he is capable of so we all have to be extremely cautious. If any of you get any information about him or encounter him, let the others know immediately. Do I make myself clear?" Everybody answered "Yes" in unison and Mitsuru dismissed everyone except for Akihiko, Shinjiro and Junpei._

* * *

><p><em> "Iori, you do understand that you and Chidori are Takaya's main target right?" Mitsuru asked the younger boy who simply nodded. "Good. I have arranged a vacation for you and Chidori in her desired place to somewhat ensure your safety." Mitsuru said. <em>

_"Uhm, where is this place we're talking about?" Junpei asked uncomfortably, somehow he felt that he wouldn't like the answer. _

_"India. You'd be staying there until the police apprehend Takaya." _

_"Whoa, whoa, aren't the expenses going to be way up the roof?" Junpei exclaimed. _

_Mitsuru smirked confidently, "Have you forgotten about the power of Kirijo?" Then she continued, "I've already taken care of everything. All you have to do is pack your things, get on the plane and stay there until Takaya's caught."_

_ Junpei frowned, "I don't think I can repay you even if I worked my entire life."_

_Mitsuru looked at him seriously, "Money is not a problem and you don't have to pay me. Your safety is my concern." Junpei looked at Mitsuru in deep gratitude and Mitsuru smiled at him. _

_"Go pack your things Iori, we'll be leaving tomorrow morning. I'll accompany you to India to make sure everything goes smoothly." Junpei just nodded and left the room in silence. Akihiko and Shinjiro watched the boy leave and turned to Mitsuru. _

_"Akihiko, I know you're moving to Tokyo for college and as you both know, I have duties to the Kirijo group. However, as their senpais we still have to look after them. If they need help we have to be ready to assist them in any way we can." Mitsuru said and Akihiko nodded then she turned to Shinjiro. _

_"Since you'll be staying here, I hope I can count on you to look after them." She said. _

_"Not making any promises." Shinjiro simply said. Akihiko stared at him for a while and he repeated what he said with more emphasis. Akihiko just sighed and return his attention to Mitsuru. _

_"You said that he remembers everything right?" Mitsuru nodded. "But how? I mean, we didn't remember at first and we probably wouldn't have if we didn't make that promise. Well, with the exception of Aigis and the twins of course." Akihiko said. _

_"I don't know either. I've asked the scientists from the lab to figure that out." Mitsuru replied then she continued, "We should rest now, this has been a long day." The two boys nodded and they left the meeting room. _

_The following morning, Junpei yawned for the second time as he watched Mitsuru talk to some guy at the airport about something. Finally, they finished talking and Mitsuru turned to the two. _

_"Let's go." She said and Junpei and Chidori followed her. Junpei was rubbing his eyes as he sleepily walked behind Chidori and soon they were boarding a plane owned by the Kirijo group. _

_Hours later, they arrived in India. Junpei was fully awake now. He looked at Chidori and noticed how excited she looked as they stepped out of the plane. _

_"Alright! IN-DI-AAA! We're finally here!" He shouted excitedly and Chidori giggled while Mitsuru just smiled._

* * *

><p>Junpei's phone rung for the 3rd time and finally snapped back into reality and answered the phone. "Senpai?"<p>

"I've been trying to call you." Mitsuru said on the other end.

"I'm sorry. I was preoccupied with something else." Junpei replied.

"How are you two doing?" She asked and her kohai immediately answered, "We're okay."

"Good to hear." The girl said and heard Junpei trying to say something. "Yeah?"

"Senpai, I was wondering. Maybe Chidori and I can go back to Port Island now? Or even just me. Chidori can stay here so she'll be safe." Junpei asked.

"No Iori. You will stay there until Takaya is caught. That's an order." Mitsuru said and Junpei was about to object when Mitsuru cut him off, "Besides, Chidori needs you by her side." Upon hearing this, Junpei sighed in defeat while Mitsuru chuckled.

"Well, call me if anything comes up." Mitsuru said and hung up. Junpei once again sighed and cursed then put his phone back in his pocket. After a few more minutes, he stood up and went back to the room.

* * *

><p>Theodore looked at his watch as he knocked on his master's room. It was 10:30 in the evening. He knocked once more on the golden door and heard his master giving him permission to enter.<p>

Igor, with his wide, eerie grin looked at Theodore as he took a sip from his cup of tea. "What brings you here Theodore?"

Theodore nervously approached his master then spoke up, "I have to go out master. I have something to take care of." Igor put his cup down and took the book from the table.

"Don't be out for too long. I may need you to run a late night errand for me." He said as he opened the book. Theodore bowed and thanked his master and quickly left the room.

* * *

><p>Ryoji stood quietly in the darkness of the cemetery. He stared at the tombstones in front of him. Even though it was night, he could still see like it was daytime. He felt droplets of water landing on his shoulders and he looked up.<p>

"I should have brought an umbrella." He said and as if on cue, the rain started to fall but Ryoji didn't move from his position. Soon, he noticed someone coming from the direction of the gate and smiled. He waited for the person approaching to arrive and soon enough, he arrived.

"Forgive me for being late. I had to return to get an umbrella." Theodore said with a frown looking at Ryoji who was soaking wet. He approached the smaller guy so he would be under the umbrella.

"It's okay. I won't get sick no matter how hard the rain falls anyway." Ryoji said with a smile and looked at the taller man. "There's been a change of plans. I won't be able to bring them back tomorrow. I'll see if I can send them back the day after tomorrow. Just be ready." He said.

"Everything is ready. I'm just waiting for their arrival." Theodore said disappointed that the twins wouldn't return as soon as he was hoping. "When do you think would be the latest possible day you could send them back?" Theodore asked.

"Probably Sa—" Ryoji said but stopped.

"Is something the matter?" Theodore asked.

"I have to go." Ryoji said and before Theodore could say anything more, the boy disappeared.

* * *

><p>Well... Another *long* chapter done. Sorry for the length, for the third time.<p>

A quick preview of Chapter 4 - Most part would involve Ken Amada

Thanks so much again for those who read and appreciate my fanfiction. ^_^


	4. Chapter 4 Insomnia

Chapter 4: Insomnia

"Minato-ni, are you awake?" Minako asked her brother but got no response. "Ryoji… Ryoji… I need to talk to you." Minako said softly then Ryoji appeared before her.

"Minako-san, what's wrong?" Ryoji asked looking at Minako.

"Let's try to get the piece again." She said and Ryoji calmly said, "Yeah, tomorrow evening."

"I mean, now." Minako said seriously. Ryoji sighed and put his hand on Minako's face gently rubbing her cheek.

"We're not ready. You need rest."

"But, the moment we started trying, our time started too." Minako said.

"I know. We can try tomorrow. I promise, for now rest." Ryoji replied removing his hand on Minako's face and disappeared.

* * *

><p>Fuuka knocked softly on Ken's door. He locked himself up after finishing dinner without saying anymore to the girls.<p>

"Ken-kun, are you alright?" asked Fuuka in a worried tone. Ken didn't answer Fuuka for a while and it made Fuuka more worried. The short haired girl tried to knock again but still there was no answer so she finally gave up.

Fuuka sighed then said, "If something's bothering you or you don't feel good let us know, okay? Well I'm going upstairs now." Fuuka left after this and went upstairs where she found the taller girl sitting on a chair.

"Well?" Yukari asked and Fuuka just shook her head with a frown as she took a sit on another chair. Yukari sighed before saying, "Let's just leave him for a while. I guess that's the best thing to do. If something's wrong, I'm sure he'll tell us when he's ready."

Fuuka nodded and said, "I just hope that if something is wrong, it's nothing serious." Yukari looked at her quietly. For a while, the two girls just looked at each other in silence.

"Why don't we call Akihiko-senpai or Shinjiro-senpai? I'm sure if Ken had a problem, he'd open up to them." Fuuka suggested.

Yukari replied, "I doubt Shinjiro-senpai would answer the phone."

"True." Fuuka said and paused while the two girls looked at each other. "Let's try Akihiko-senpai then." She continued while Yukari just nodded in agreement. Fuuka took her phone out and dialed Akihiko's number while Yukari watched her. Fuuka closed the phone after a while with a frown on her face.

"It's busy." She said.

"Let's try tomorrow." Yukari suggested and stood up from the chair. "For now, let's just get some rest." She continued and Fuuka nodded.

* * *

><p>"Uhm. Well. I'm sorry. Did I wake you up Sanada-san?" The youngest member of S.E.E.S. stuttered.<p>

"Sort of but it's alright. So what's the matter Ken?" Akihiko asked.

"Well. Uhmm…." Ken said hesitating to speak.

"It's okay Ken, go ahead." Akihiko said patiently to the younger boy.

"I was just calling to say hi." Ken said trying to calm himself down.

"You called me at 12 midnight just to say hi?" Akihiko asked raising his eyebrow.

"Y-yeah." Ken stuttered once more.

"Ken, what's the matter?" The older boy asked again then he heard Ken sigh.

"Well, it's about Minako-san." Ken said very softly, it was almost inaudible.

"What?" Akihiko asked again and Ken repeated his statement a bit louder or at least enough for Akihiko to hear. "What about her?" The white haired boy asked again.

"I think I saw her." Ken replied quickly.

"What? Where?" Akihiko said with a mixture of confusion, excitement and curiosity in his voice.

"In my dream." Ken said, feeling embarrassed with his response and he heard Akihiko sigh.

"Ken it's only natural for you to see her in your dreams, it's natural for a person to dream about someone else." Akihiko explained and Ken frowned.

"It's different." Ken said flatly.

"What do you mean different?" Akihiko asked then gasped, "Don't tell me you're having those kinds of dreams Ken. And with her, of all people." Akihiko said.

"N-no! It's not that kind of dream." Ken said defensively and blushing. "And she seemed surprised to see me as if I wasn't supposed to be in that dream. I saw Ryoji too. And a shadow that looked like him." Ken continued as he tried to calm himself down.

"I dream about shadows and Ryoji and the Nyx and everything else too." Akihiko said.

"I got injured in my dream and when I woke up, my arm was bleeding." Ken explained then continued without letting the older boy speak, "Also, Ryoji used a part of his scarf to bandage my wound. When I woke up, my bleeding arm was covered with a yellow piece of cloth that seems to be part of that scarf." Akihiko started to get curious upon hearing this.

"Are you sure you're not just imagining that you got injured?" He asked and the young boy answered quickly.

"Yes. Fuuka-san was actually the one who noticed it."

"But how is that possible if it was only a dream?" Akihiko was confused.

"I don't know." Ken said weakly. The two boys fell silent.

"I'm guessing you haven't told Fuuka and the others about that dream." He said and Ken immediately said yes. "Okay, so here's what we're gonna do. For now, let's just keep it between the two of us and I'll try to figure out anything that could be causing this. If you have a dream like that again, call me. Got it?" The older guy said and Ken just agreed. "Good. Now Ken, go to bed. If you want to grow taller, you need to sleep." Akihiko said and hung up. Ken looked at his phone then sighed as he went to bed.

* * *

><p>"Who was that?" Mitsuru's companion asked and she replied, "Someone from the dorm I used to stay in. I called to say hi." Max stopped walking and looked at the girl.<p>

"You're a Kirijo and yet you stayed in a dorm. I hope you don't mind me asking why."

Mitsuru closed her eyes and gave him one of her confident smiles, "I had important club activities that required me to be in a location near the school I was attending too. It also required me to be near my club members."

"I see. Those must have been very important club activities." The blond man said with a confident smile of his own and proceeded to walk. "Where do you want to go now?" He asked the female redhead.

"Hmmm..." She thought for a while with her arms folded then she looked at the tall man. "I hope you don't mind but I'd like to return to my room for now." She said.

The man just smiled at her and said "I understand. Let me accompany you back to your room then."

Mitsuru shook her head, "It's alright. I'd like to return by myself. Besides, your boss might be looking for you."

"I understand. Just have the hotel call me if there's anything you need or should there be any problems." Max said, bowed and walked away. Mitsuru watched the man walk away as she started her walk back to the hotel which was one corner away.

Max stopped when he noticed that Mitsuru was already walking. He looked at her until she turned in a corner. He smiled then entered the backseat of the car he used to pick up Mitsuru the previous day.

"Did you have a good time sir?" The driver asked.

"Yes, I did." The blond man replied and the driver looked back at him.

"When do you intend to proceed with your plan?" the brown haired man asked still looking at him.

"In time Marcus, in time." Max said with a smile and they drove away.

* * *

><p>Mitsuru walked leisurely on the street on her way back to the hotel, enjoying everything she sees when she heard a voice inside her.<p>

"Mitsuru, I have a bad feeling about that man." The voice said and Mitsuru looked around before responding, "Who?"

"That man in the black suit, the man that calls himself Max." the female voice said.

Mitsuru stopped and softly said, "I don't think there's anything to be suspicious about Artemisia." She heard the persona sigh. "However, I will be careful." Mitsuru assured as she resumed her walk.

* * *

><p>Shinjiro lay quietly on his bed. For the second night in a row, he couldn't sleep. He couldn't decide whether it was because he was in a new place or he can't get Minako out of his head or because he felt guilty for leaving the others. Of all the possibilities, he hated the third most.<p>

"Maybe I should find a different place to stay in. This place ain't comfortable." He said to himself as he tossed and turned on the bed.

After a while he sat up, "Damn you brat. You're already gone and yet you're still messing with my head." He cursed under his breath and finally stood up and headed to a small bathroom staring at himself in the mirror.

"Tch. You're pathetic Aragaki."

"You can't deny it. You're guilty for leaving those kids." He suddenly heard someone say inside his head.

"Shut up." Shinjiro simply said as he kept staring at himself through the mirror.

"Even if you tell me to shut up, your conscience is just gonna bother you. You're guilty because left them. You know they need you. Especially the boy." The voice inside him said.

"Shut up or I'll start taking those drugs again." Shinjiro warned and the voice quickly answered, "You're only hurting yourself with that drug."

"Quit mocking me you asshole." Shinjiro said more annoyed now.

"If you call me an asshole, you're calling yourself an asshole." The voice mocked.

"Tch. You're pain in the neck Castor." The brunette said as he left the bathroom.

"My personality is a reflection of yours." The persona said in a fading, weakening voice. Shinjiro sat back down on the bed and sighed.

"Finally. He's decided to shut up."

"Nope. Still here. Will always be here. After all, I am you and you are me. We are one." Castor said mocking Shinjiro more. Shinjiro groaned as he lay back down on his bed and tried to clear his thoughts and sleep.

* * *

><p>Fuuka stretched her arms as she went down to the kitchen. She yawned and looked around to see if anybody was up on her way there.<p>

"Hmmm… Seems like nobody's awake yet." Fuuka said in her mind as she saw Koromaru still sleeping in the living room floor. She opened the door to the kitchen and found a young boy, half asleep with his head close to landing on a kettle of boiling water.

"K-ken-kun!" She shouted as Ken's head was about to land on the hot kettle. This startled Ken causing him to jolt up almost spilling the hot water on himself. Fuuka sighed in relief when she realized that Ken didn't get hurt.

"Are you okay Ken-kun?" She asked with concern. Ken sighed and grabbed his mug.

"Yeah. I'm just tired is all." Ken said wearily.

"Maybe you should go back to bed." Fuuka suggested as she noticed how tired Ken looked.

"I've been trying but everytime I'm about to sleep, something happens to wake me up." The younger boy said as he poured the hot water on the mug.

"I-I'm sorry." Fuuka said, full of guilt.

"N-no.. I-it's not what I meant Fuuka-san." Ken said stuttering. The two fell silent for a while as Ken stirred his coffee. "Would you like some coffee Fuuka-san?" Ken asked, deciding to break the silence. Fuuka shook her head politely.

"What would you like for breakfast?" She asked the boy.

"Anything would be good I guess." Ken said straightforwardly as he took a sip of his coffee. Fuuka walked towards the fridge to look for something to cook.

"Uhmmm… Fuuka-san?" Ken started but hesitated. Fuuka looked back at him, "Do you think it's possible for the things in your dream to happen to you in real life?" Fuuka closed the fridge with something frozen in her arms and thought for a while.

"I guess it is possible. I mean, it depends on the dream." She said as she walked over to the sink to wash the frozen food.

"What do you mean?" Ken asked.

"I mean if for example in your dream you're a rock star, you can be a rock star in real life. Or if you get lost in your dream, you can get lost in real life too." She said looking at the boy.

"No. I mean, say for example, in your dream you're eating ice cream. Half-way through that dream, you wake up and find yourself with a spoon and a half-eaten bowl of ice cream in front of you." Ken explained.

"Maybe if you're sleepwalking or something like that, it can happen." Fuuka replied as she took the now defrosted fish from the sink. "I hope you don't mind if we have broiled fish and miso soup for breakfast." The blue haired girl said.

"Maybe Fuuka-san's right. Maybe I was sleepwalking or something and hurt myself last night." Ken thought to himself not really paying attention to what the girl said.

"Ken-kun?" Fuuka called tapping the boy's shoulder lightly.

"Huh? What?" Ken asked with a confused look.

"Are you okay Ken-kun?" Fuuka asked, worried about the boy.

"Yeah. What were you saying earlier?" Ken asked to which Fuuka replied, "I was asking if you're okay with broiled fish and miso soup for breakfast."

"Yeah." Ken said plainly.

* * *

><p>Akihiko was panting as he stood in front of the door of his new home. He took his phone out from his pocket and stared at it for a while. He scanned the phonebook for Ken's number and stared at it. He was about to press the call button but then changed his mind and put it back in his pocket. After a while, Akihiko finally caught his breath and leaned on the front door looking up at the sky.<p>

"Today is going to be a good day, right Minako?" He said while still looking at the sky with a smile on his face then he opened the door and went inside. His apartment wasn't big but it wasn't that small either. It was enough for him. It had everything he needed. Sans, the girl he loved the most of course. As he stood straight up after removing his shoes, he hit his bag which was on top of the shoe rack.

"Huh?" He noticed something fell off the partly open bag and looked closer. "This is…." Akihiko gasped as he picked up the rabbit doll.

"What the heck is this doing here?" He asked confused as he wiped the doll gently. Akihiko took his phone out once more and scanned the phonebook for Aigis' number and dialed it. After about five rings, there was no answer so Akihiko cancelled the call. He dialed another number and in a matter of seconds, someone answered.

"Hello Akihiko-senpai?" A tired female voice answered.

"Hey Takeba, sorry if I woke you up. Is Aigis there?" The boxer asked.

"It's alright senpai. I woke up before you called and no, she's not here. She's at the Kirijo lab. Why?" Yukari asked fully awake now.

"I know it's a weird question to ask but did you put the rabbit doll I gave Minako in my bag?" He asked awkwardly.

"Huh? No, I didn't senpai." Yukari answered.

"I see." The boy said.

"Why? What's wrong senpai?" The brown haired girl asked and Akihiko quickly answered, "It's nothing. So anyway, how's everybody?"

"We're all good. How about you senpai?" Yukari asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Well sorry again for disturbing you." Akihiko said awkwardly.

"It's alright senpai." Yukari said reassuringly and the two hung up. Akihiko sighed as he set the phone down on the table and stared at the rabbit doll.

"How the heck did you end up in my bag?"

* * *

><p><em>It was the night before graduation and most of the occupants of the dorm were already asleep. After all, it was 12 midnight. Minako sat up from her bed, she was still tired but she woke up for no particular reason. She looked at the rabbit doll sitting on her study table and took it. She held it close to her. It was very important to her because Akihiko gave it to her. She smiled at it and wiped the rabbit doll's face gently. She stood up while holding the doll close and quietly walked down to the boys' floor. She leaned on Akihiko's door and heard nothing. <em>

_"He must be asleep." She thought to herself and tried to open the door as gently as possible. It was open. _

_"He must have left it open again." Minako thought again as she quietly made her way to Akihiko's bed. She sat on his bed and stared at the sleeping Akihiko. _

_She touched his face gently, smiled and softly said in a sad tone, "I won't be able to look after Dolly so I'll leave her to you." Minako kissed Akihiko on the forehead softly and stood up. She looked for Akihiko's bag and placed the rabbit doll, which she affectionately calls Dolly, inside. _

_She took one last look at Akihiko and left the room._

* * *

><p>Yukari stared at her phone weirdly trying to process her earlier conversation with Akihiko.<p>

"That was awkward." She said to herself then continued, "Well, Akihiko-senpai _is_ awkward around girls, even with Minako back then." Then she heard a knock on her door.

"Yukari-chan, would you like to join us for breakfast?" Fuuka asked from the outside.

"Sure, but you guys can start without me." Yukari replied.

"Now…" She said to herself as she stood up then looked at another picture of her and Minato sitting on her study table then smiled. After a brief moment, her smile faded and her expression turned into a mixture of horror and anger. She grabbed the frame quickly and stared at it closely. With her other hand holding the frame, she raises the other in a fist.

"STUPEI!" She shouted as she gritted her teeth and got out of the room with the frame still in hand.

* * *

><p>Yukari stomped down to the kitchen and opened the door with a scary expression which scared the three other occupants of the dorm. Koromaru hid under the table while Ken fell off his chair and Fuuka just stared at her awkwardly.<p>

"G-good morning Yukari-san." Ken said nervously as he got back to his feet and sat back down.

"There is definitely nothing good with the morning." Yukari said in an annoyed tone.

"W-what's wrong Yukari-chan?" Fuuka asked uncomfortably.

"Stupei is!" Yukari said loudly as she sat down next to Ken. Koromaru slowly went out of hiding and moved beside Fuuka's feet.

"What did he do this time? Or rather, what can he possibly do wrong when he's hundreds of miles away?" Fuuka asked more calmly this time while Ken just watched the two girls talk and resumed eating his breakfast. Yukari suddenly stood up from her chair, surprising Ken again causing him to fall off the chair.

"Look at this." The brown haired girl said as she showed Fuuka the picture.

"It's a picture of you and Minato-kun." Fuuka said, confused.

Yukari leaned towards Fuuka and said, "_Look closer."_ Fuuka stared at her friend for a while then looked at the picture again.

After a while of staring, the shorter girl gasped. "Whoa! Oh dear" Ken slowly got back on his feet as he fixed his shorts and walked to Fuuka and took a look at the picture. He immediately spotted what Yukari was talking about and tried to hold his laughter in.

"M-maybe that was accidental Yukari-chan." Fuuka suggested.

"No way! Just look at Stupei. He's grinning with his hand forming a peace sign. He did that on purpose. _This picture was supposed to have **just me and Minato** in it._" Yukari said in a very annoyed tone.

Ken, while trying to hold his laughter said, "It's not that obvious Yukari-san. Unless someone stares at it or looks very closely, people won't notice him in the background."

"Well I've already noticed it so I'm always gonna remember him being with us on that picture." Yukari said and continued, "I might… I might…" She said in horror and screamed.

"NO, NO, NO, NO!" She continued to scream in horror and the Fuuka and Ken just looked at her weirdly. Yukari suddenly grabbed Fuuka by the shoulders and looked at her in great fear.

"What if I end up dreaming about him too?"

Fuuka didn't know what to say and just stared at Yukari uncomfortably while Ken, unable to hold in his laughter any longer, burst into laughter.

* * *

><p>"Minato-ni…" Minako called her brother out to which Minato just made a sound. "What time is it?" She asked.<p>

"Minako, what kind of question is that?" Minato asked his sister.

"Well, I just want to know the time. Maybe Ryoji and I can try to retrieve the piece now." Minako explained.

"Minako we've been stuck here like this for who knows how long… _How the heck am I supposed to know the time?_" The older Arisato said.

"I was just hoping you knew." Minako said.

"Well I don't. I've lost my sense of time and day since we got here. So don't ask me." Minato said more calmly this time. The twins were silent for a while when a new question popped into Minako's head.

"Minato-ni, do you think it's possible to separate Ryoji-kun's human self to his Shadow self? I mean maybe we can do something to turn Ryoji into a human. I think he deserves it."

"I don't know but even if it is possible, I don't think we should do that." Minato answered.

"I know you're mad at him but you two used to be very good friends." Minako said in a sad tone.

"It's not that. I mean, I am mad at him but that's not the reason why we shouldn't help him become human if that's possible." Minato explained.

"Why then?" Minako asked curiously.

"It was Ryoji's humanity that gave us a choice. It was his humanity that gave us a chance to prevent the Fall." Minato explained further, "His humanity is what's keeping him intact. If we separate his human self to his Shadow self, his Shadow self might end up bringing about the fall to earth successfully, despite our sacrifice. We can't and we shouldn't take that risk."

"Then why are we going to try and get our lives back given the risk that the Nyx might wake up again?" Minako asked bitterly.

"The Arcana sword can replace us. Nothing can replace the humanity that's keeping _death_ intact." Minato explained obviously referring to Ryoji at the mention of the word death.

* * *

><p>Ken finally settled down after laughing to his heart's content while Fuuka and Yukari finished eating their breakfast. Fuuka was the first one to stand up with the plates in her hand. She placed the plates on the sink then ruffled Koromaru's fur.<p>

"Would you like to go for a walk Koro-chan?" She asked and the dog barked cheerfully. The S.E.E.S. members didn't need Aigis to tell them when Koromaru wanted to go for a walk.

"I'll just finish washing the dishes." She said then Yukari spoke up, "I can wash those, you can go for a walk now."

"Aren't you going anywhere?" Fuuka asked looking at the taller girl.

"Yeah, I'll visit Minato and Minako later." Yukari replied and approached the dog with the frame in her hand. "Koro-chan, I have an important mission for you. Take this with you and bury it somewhere far." Yukari told the dog giving it the frame which the dog took using his mouth understanding what the girl said.

"Are you sure Yukari-chan?" Fuuka asked uneasily.

"Yeah." Yukari replied while staring at Ken who was drinking coffee. "Be honest Ken, exactly how many mugs of coffee did you drink already?" The older girl asked the boy who was now visibly shaking. Ken looked away as held the mug and hesitated to answer.

"Answer me Ken." Yukari said authoritatively as Fuuka looked at the shaking boy with worry.

"Well…" Ken said but hesitated again.

"KEN." Yukari said louder this time.

"This may be my fifth or sixth mug." He said.

"What? You're not supposed to drink that much. You're not even supposed to drink coffee." Yukari lectured.

"No more coffee for you Ken-kun." Fuuka said as she took the mug from Ken and threw the remaining coffee on the sink.

"Just look at you, you're shaking." Yukari said.

"But—"Ken tried to speak but was cut off by Yukari.

"No buts. No more coffee for you." She said and took the container with the coffee then took a chair and stood on it and placed the coffee in the top of a cupboard which Ken wouldn't be able to reach even with the a chair.

"Now go to your room and stay there Ken." Yukari said in a way that a mother would send her child to his room. Ken just sighed and went upstairs. He knew better than to argue with an annoyed Yukari. Fuuka giggled at what she just saw and Yukari looked at her weirdly.

"You're acting like a mom getting mad at her son for doing something he wasn't supposed to." Fuuka said while Yukari turned red. "Let's go Koro-chan." Fuuka said as she grabbed Koromaru's leash and the two left the dorm.

* * *

><p>Ken sighed as he entered his room. He locked the door behind him and stared at the spear he used for their nightly escapades in Tartarus months ago.<p>

"I guess I _did_ overdo the coffee." He said to himself as he sat on his bed. Then he heard his persona in his mind.

"Yes you did. I told you to stop already when you reached your second mug."

"I know, I know. But, I don't want to sleep. I can't." Ken explained while looking at his shaking hands.

"I think you thinking too much of what happened last night in that dream with Minako-san caused you to keep dreaming of being attacked by shadows." The persona explained.

"I'm scared Kala-Nemi. I'm scared that those shadows might kill me in my dream and I die for real. I don't want to die." Ken said shaking more out of fear than the coffee. "If you didn't wake me every time I start to dream about those shadows, I might be dead already." The boy said.

"Don't worry too much Ken. Just relax, relax, relax…" Kala-Nemi said as his voice faded from Ken's mind. Ken was slowly drifting off to sleep while sitting on his bed when he heard someone knocking on the door. This surprised Ken again which caused him to fall off on the floor for the nth time.

"Ow, ow, ow, why do I keep falling off wherever I sit today?" He said as he rubbed his backside.

"I'm sorry about snapping at you Ken." Yukari said as the boy opened his door.

"It's okay Yukari-san. You don't have to apologize. I did drink too much coffee after all." Ken said calmly. Yukari smiled at the boy and Ken returned the smile.

"If you're interested, you can go with me to the cemetery. I'm visiting Minato and Minako." The older girl said while looking at Ken who was no longer shaking.

"Okay." Ken quickly answered.

"I'll just take a shower then we can go." Yukari said and went upstairs. Ken on the other hand, went downstairs and turned the TV on to watch his favorite show.

* * *

><p>"Ryoji!" Minako exclaimed excitedly as she saw Ryoji.<p>

"Good morning to you too Minako." Ryoji said with a smile then turned to the blue haired boy, "To you as well Minato."

"What time is it?" Minako asked.

"You're full of energy today Minako-san. It's 11 am in Port Island." Ryoji replied.

"I see." Minako sounded disappointed.

"Why?" Ryoji asked.

"I thought we can already try again." The girl said and Ryoji's smile returned.

"It's different here. Here, there's no time or day. Everything is still." Minako gasped.

"Then we can try now!"

"Yes, we can. However, I have to prepare a few things first before we give it another shot. Give me a few minutes." Ryoji said and disappeared.

* * *

><p>Ken looked at his watch for the second time and it's been 30 minutes since Yukari took her shower.<p>

"I don't think I'll ever understand girls." He thought.

"Sorry I took a while, I have to look good when I visit Minato after all." Yukari said as she appeared from the hallway wearing a pink dress and sandals.

"You look good no matter what you wear" Ken said without really looking at her as he turned the TV off.

"Thank you." Yukari said with a big smile. "Let's go then." She continued and they left the dorm.

* * *

><p>Yukari's been observing Ken since they left the dorm and this was the 10th time he yawned since they got off the train. 25th if she included their walk from the dorm to the train station.<p>

"Maybe you should've stayed at the dorm Ken. You look so sleepy." Yukari said a bit worried about the boy who was already half-asleep as they walked. Ken shook his head to wake himself up.

"I'm fine Yukari-san." He said with a smile. They continued to walk in silence and stopped a few more steps from the cemetery. The traffic lights were on red so they couldn't really cross.

Yukari looked worriedly at the boy and said, "Let's just head back to the dorm." Ken didn't answer and Yukari noticed that he was already falling forward on the street where a car was nearing and grabbed his arm. Ken woke up and stared at Yukari who was holding his arm. Yukari stared back at him quietly as she let go of the boy's arm.

"Yukari-san, the light's green." Ken said casually and started walking. Yukari just followed him quietly.

* * *

><p>About 10 minutes after Ryoji left, Minako started to feel very restless. She didn't want to waste anymore time just standing where she was. She wanted to find all of the pieces of the sword so she can be with her friends. She wanted to find all the pieces so she can move again, eat again, live again. She felt very restless and impatient that she started saying random verses.<p>

Halfway through her 80th, Minato spoke up, "Minako, stop already. It's annoying."

"But I can't help it. I'm very excited and I really, really want to get this over with so we can be with our friends again." She said.

"I know but it's really annoying how you say random verses. Especially at the speed you're saying it. It's giving me a headache." Minato complained and Minako just sighed.

"Ryoji, please come back already." Minako said and as if Ryoji heard her, he appeared.

"I'm sorry if I took a while Minako-san. Ready?"

"Yeah" Minako said full of energy. Ryoji smiled at her vigor and took some sort of gem out of his pocket. He touched Minako's cold, stone shoulder and threw the gem in the air. With a flash, Ryoji was gone.

Minato sighed, "I hope they get it this time."

* * *

><p>"There's a lot of people on the streets today" Ken remarked while they were walking, getting closer to the cemetery.<p>

"Yeah, it's actually kind of surprising considering that today is a weekday." Yukari said, trying to forget about the almost accident earlier had she not noticed Ken.

"There's the gate!" Ken exclaimed with a wide grin on his face. "I'll race you there Yukari-san." He continued energetically then ran. Yukari followed him and started running as well.

"Hey, that's not fair, you got a head start." Yukari exclaimed as she ran behind him. "

You're bigger than me so it's just fair!" Ken said looking back at Yukari then facing forward again as he kept running.

"I'm gonna win!" the boy said as he was getting closer to the gate. "No you're not! I can still catch up!" Yukari said going faster.

This was the last thing Ken heard Yukari say when everything suddenly turned quiet and dark.

* * *

><p>Well, I've managed to finish another chapter and luckily, it's shorter than the previous 2 but it's stiil long, so sorry. T_T<p>

Anyway, I guess that the preview I mentioned in the last chapter wasn't accurate. Ken did have a big role in this chapter but not as much as I intended.

Sorry for those who are big fans of him if I made him fall off the chair about 3 times, I think.

Again, thanks so, so much to everyone who reads and appreciates my fanfiction even if each chapter is long.

A quick preview of the next chapter - It would be more serious than the previous chapters and Ken Amada would definitely be heavily involved in it.


	5. Chapter 5 Nightmare

Chapter 5: Nightmare

Ken stopped running, rubbed his eyes and shook his head. For a moment, he thought that everything turn black.

"Huh?" Ken scrunched his eyebrows and looked around.

"Yukari-san?" He called out while looking around but the girl didn't answer back. Ken didn't move from where he was standing for a while as he looked confused. He wasn't alone, there were few people walking but Yukari wasn't among them.

"Darn kid!" A pissed off, drunk man said as he bumped on Ken. Ken bowed his head and ran. For some strange reason, the man struck fear into the young boy.

Moments later, Ken panted heavily, putting his hand on the wall for support while looking at the ground. Once his breathing returned to normal, he finally noticed the other things that were off. He was nowhere near the cemetery and more importantly, it was dark, the moon was shining brightly. He looked at his watch and it said, 11:55 am. Ken tapped his watch to see if it was broken but it wasn't.

"Where am I?" Ken asked himself and got an answer. "We have now arrived in Port Island Station. Please double check your belongings and watch your step upon leaving the train. Thank you." A female voice said. Ken walked around the wall and was surprised to find himself only four blocks away from Port Island Train Station.

* * *

><p>Minako slowly opened her eyes and froze in fear while Ryoji instinctively shoved Minako and himself to the side of the street.<p>

"Are you okay Minako?" Ryoji asked in concern as he helped the girl stand up. Minako just nodded.

"That was close." Ryoji said as he sighed in relief. As Minako dusted the dirt off her skirt, the truck pulled over and the driver shouted.

"You stupid kids! If you want to die, go bother someone else!" The driver said. The people passing by were also whispering with each other but Minako was sure she heard one say "stupid" and another say "how annoying". This made Minako feel very uncomfortable.

"Ryoji, let's go." She said and Ryoji nodded as the two walked quietly on the street.

* * *

><p>"Hello Fuuka? Where are you?" Yukari asked in a muffled voice.<p>

"I'm still here at the Shrine with Koro-chan. What's wrong Yukari-chan?" Fuuka asked.

"It's Ken." was Yukari's short answer.

"What's wrong with him? Where are you?" Fuuka worriedly asked. Yukari was about to answer Fuuka when she saw the door open. She stood up from the bench while still holding the phone and asked, "How is he doctor?"

"He seems to be exhausted but other than that, he's fine." The doctor said.

"A-are you sure?" Yukari asked again and the woman nodded.

"He does have a wound on his left arm but it's not that deep. Nothing a little ointment can't cure. So if you'll excuse me." The doctor said and left.

"We're at the hospital." Yukari said to Fuuka then hung up. Yukari quietly entered the room and sat down next to the bed and watched the sleeping boy.

* * *

><p>"Koro-chan!" Fuuka shouted and the dog immediately ran towards her. She knelt down and scratched the dog's ears.<p>

"We have to go now Koro-chan. Ken's in the hospital." She said with a frown and the dog seemed to understand her as he whined. Fuuka put the leash back on Koromaru's neck.

"I'll take you home first." She continued and the two walked back to the dorm quietly.

* * *

><p>Ryoji and Minako continued their walk on the street while hearing people around them whisper. The duo stopped when they see a group of drunkards ahead. Minako felt very uneasy and tugged Ryoji's shirt.<p>

"Maybe there's nothing there." Ryoji said as they started to turn around. The group started following them and soon caught up.

"Where ya headed?" The biggest guy asked while Ryoji and Minako tried to ignore him and continued to walk.

"Hey, don't be rude. Our boss is talking to you." A guy with green, spiky hair said as he grabbed Minako's arm.

"Let me go." Minako said angrily. The guy with a pierced eyebrow went in front of them then smirked.

"My, you're a pretty lady." He said.

"You heard her, let her go." Ryoji shouted.

"Or what? You gonna beat us up huh pretty boy?" The guy in front of them said.

"Yeah. I'll beat the crap out of you." Ryoji said, now angry. The guy then grabbed Ryoji by the arm.

"Think you're so tough 'cause you got your girl here huh?" He said and punched Ryoji in the face.

"Not so tough now are you pretty boy?" The guy said again then the man who seems to be the leader spoke up, "If he'd still be good looking after we give him a good beating." The entire gang sans the guy with green hair holding Minako started beating Ryoji up while they all laughed maniacally. Minako watched in horror as they beat him up while Ryoji was quiet, not fighting back.

"Help us!" Minako shouted but the passersby just ignored her. "Stop it! Please!" Minako begged and the men stopped the beating.

"Tch. You're just words, kid." The leader said as he kicked Ryoji in the stomach then turned to Minako. "Don't hang with this loser. Come with us." He said.

"No." Minako said as the green haired guy touched her face.

"No, don't touch me!" Minako shouted but the guy continued to rub Minako's cheek and neck. The drunken men all laughed as they approached the girl. Ryoji's blood started to boil at the sight before him and just like that, he snapped. Ryoji changed into his shadow form and attacked them.

In a matter of seconds, only a scared Minako, shadow Ryoji and a pool of blood were left. Calming down, Ryoji returned to his human form and helped Minako up.

"Are you okay?" He asked and Minako nodded. The passersby who witnessed Ryoji's attack were staring at them, angry then the moon started to look bigger and ghostly. Minako frowned as she remembered that the moon looked like that during the Dark Hour.

"Minako, I think we should run." Ryoji suggested as the passersby slowly approached them and the pool of blood turned black and slowly took on a form familiar to both. Minako nodded and they ran. The passersby started running after them and soon enough, they turned into shadows just like the pool of blood.

* * *

><p>As the two ran, they encountered a number of coffins which confirmed that it was indeed the Dark Hour. Ryoji pulled Minako into an alley and they stayed there, motionless as the shadows passed by not noticing them. Minako sighed in relief as Ryoji pulled something out of his pocket. He grabbed Minako's hand and gave her something.<p>

"It's not as strong as the real one, but that should be good for now." Ryoji said as Minako looked at the object. She was about to say something when they heard footsteps.

"Shhh." Ryoji said softly as Minako stood still while he walked towards the street quietly. The footsteps stopped momentarily.

"It's over there. We have to hurry" A female voice said while two male voice can be heard agreeing and Ryoji's eyes widened.

"Minako!" Ryoji called softly and Minako quietly walked to him and her eyes widened as well. As the trio started to run, Minako and Ryoji looked at each other, nodded and followed them.

* * *

><p>"I-it's impossible!" Ken cried as he looked at the coffins in the train station. "The Dark Hour is gone!" He said as he shook his head refusing to believe what he was seeing.<p>

"This isn't real! We destroyed the Dark Hour!" He kept repeating loudly as he started shaking. Ken was confused, he kept thinking that this was impossible but it seemed so real then from a distance, no, somewhere very close he heard what he was hoping he wouldn't, an ear piercing scream that only shadows made.

"No! This isn't happening!" He cried. Soon he heard another familiar sound, a gunshot. The gunshot allowed Ken to somehow regain his senses and he decided to follow the source of the sounds.

* * *

><p>"Ken, please wake up." Yukari said as she cried while Fuuka looked at her quietly. The smaller girl approached Yukari and put her hands on Yukari's shoulders, consoling her.<p>

"I'm sure he'll wake up soon. The doctor said he's just tired." Fuuka said.

"I hope so." Yukari said without looking back at Fuuka. The two were silent until Yukari's phone rang. She looked the phone then at Fuuka. Fuuka took the phone from her, sighed and answered it.

"Hello Akihiko-senpai?" She answered.

"Fuuka? Hold on, did I dial your number instead of Yukari's by accident?" He asked.

"No. I'm with Yukari-chan." Fuuka said.

"Oh." Akihiko said as he sighed in relief.

"Why did you call Akihiko-senpai?" Fuuka asked.

"Yukari called me a while ago but I was out and I left my phone." Akihiko explained.

"I see." Fuuka said and Akihiko sensed something wrong.

"What's wrong?" He asked. Fuuka hesitated to answer and looked at Yukari. Yukari looked back at her and simply nodded.

"Ken collapsed." Fuuka said.

"What? What happened? Is he alright?" Akihiko asked, worried.

"The doctor said he's fine. He was just exhausted." Fuuka said and heard Akihiko sigh in relief.

"Is he awake now?" He asked.

"No. He's still asleep." Fuuka said sadly.

"Oh… Well let me know if he's awake." He said and Fuuka agreed then they hung up. Both girls sighed while looking at the boy.

"No way…" They heard the sleeping Ken say weakly and the two girls looked at each other, worried.

* * *

><p>"Watch out!" A redhead girl said. She had red hair which was tied into a side ponytail.<p>

"What the hell are you doing?" A boy with short brown hair, holding an axe said as he pulled the other boy up.

"I was trying to attack the shadow when you attacked too." said the gray haired boy with a buzz cut and bruises on his face.

"I told you, my aim isn't good so don't be on my way." The taller boy said and the two argued. Ryoji and Minako just watched in disbelief without being noticed by the three and the shadow itself as all of this happened.

"That's enough you two! Focus on the task at hand!" The redhead said but the two boys continued to argue and beat each other up.

"I SAID ENOUGH! IF YOU TWO DON'T STOP THAT, I WILL EXECUTE YOU BOTH!" She said and immediately the two boys stopped. The shadow on the other hand let out another ear piercing scream and cackled maniacally taunting the three.

"Tch. Asshole." The brown haired boy said as he prepared himself to attack while the gray haired boy looked at him and shook his head also preparing himself to attack. Minako shook her head and turned to Ryoji.

"We should help them." She said but Ryoji just shook his head and continued to watch them quietly.

* * *

><p>As Ken followed the sound of the gunshot, he saw a woman holding a boy tightly running to the same direction. He tried to stop them but they didn't seem to hear him. The woman and the boy suddenly stopped which made Ken stop as well then the woman screamed while the boy ran away, hiding in fear. Ken gasped in realization of who they were.<p>

"Castor!" the brown haired boy said as Ken watched in disbelief as Castor appeared before the woman in time to save her.

"Penthesilea!" The redhead girl shouted, summoning her Persona. "This can't be…" She said as her Persona's attack missed the shadow.

"Polydeuces!" summoned the gray haired boy. Polydeuces appeared and attacked the shadow with Zio but the shadow dodged it too. "How did he dodge that?" the boy asked frowning.

"Tch…" The brown haired boy summoned Castor once more and this time, it hit the shadow.

"Alright, let's kick some ass." He said and his comrades nodded then as they attacked the shadow together, defeating it.

"That's that." The brown haired boy said as they watched the shadow disintegrate.

"We did it!" The gray haired boy exclaimed.

"The shadows are getting stronger." The redhead followed.

"You two al—" the brown haired boy said but couldn't finish.

* * *

><p>"H-hey! Shinji! What's wrong?" The gray haired boy asked the brown haired boy who was shouting and writhing in pain, holding his head.<p>

"I-it hurts! It hurts!" Shinjiro shouted as he screamed pulling on his hair. The gray haired boy quickly removed his gloves then approached Shinjiro to try and help. The redhead girl dropped her rapier in shock as she saw Castor forming before them.

"His persona is out of control!" She exclaimed. As soon as Castor fully appeared, he went berserk bringing havoc into the area and barely missing the redhead girl.

"Mitsuru watch out!" The gray haired boy said as he shoved the redhead girl out of the way knocking them both over. "

Thank you Akihiko." Mitsuru said as the two of them stood up.

"Aaaarrrggghhhh!" Shinji screamed in pain. The two rushed to Shinjiro not knowing what to do until they heard another scream. It was the woman, Ken Amada's mother, about to be attacked by the berserk Castor.

* * *

><p>"No! Not again! Not again! No" Ryoji heard Ken scream in terror from across as Castor approached his mother. Ryoji instinctively ran towards the young boy and held him, covering his eyes right before Castor attacked the terrified woman. Ken screamed hysterically trying to get out of Ryoji's grip while Minako, like Mitsuru watched in horror as the berserk Persona attacked uncontrollably.<p>

Akihiko summoned his Persona to stop Castor from attacking but wasn't quick enough. Castor had already attacked the woman as soon as Polydeuces appeared. After the attack, everything turned quiet between the three persona users in the middle of the alley as Shinjiro passed out causing Castor to disintegrate. Mitsuru was shaking badly while Akihiko fell to his knees and started to throw up because of shock.

* * *

><p>Even after the chaos had died down, Ken continued to cry and scream hysterically as Ryoji held him. Ryoji looked at the boy sadly then moved his attention to the orange haired girl crying across them.<p>

"Minako…" Ryoji said bitterly.

Ken finally calmed down after a while and Ryoji let him go. Slowly, the boy approached his mother's body quietly and held it.

"Mom…" Ken said holding her tighter as he started to cry. Minako was about to approach him when she noticed Mitsuru, Shinjiro and Akihiko approaching Ken.

"Something isn't right." Minako thought. The three looked hypnotized. Ryoji noticed this too and looked at Minako who nodded. Ryoji approached Ken and spoke up.

"Ken, something isn't right here, we have to go." He said and the boy shook his head. He refused to let go of his mom. Ryoji put his hand on Ken's shoulder and asked again. This time, Ken pushed him away and as soon as he did this, his mom suddenly opened her eyes and grabbed him by the neck.

* * *

><p>Fuuka was freaking out as Yukari ran outside to call for help. Ken was asleep but he was turning purple, as if he was being strangled.<p>

"Please wake up Ken, wake up!" Fuuka shouted really worried about the boy, shaking the boy's body as Yukari came in with a doctor and a few nurses. The two girls held each other's hands, scared and worried about Ken while the doctor and nurses checked on him.

* * *

><p>"Ken!" Minako shouted as she ran towards the boy who was choking but Mitsuru blocked her. "Mitsuru-senpai, what are you doing? We have to help Ken!" She shouted and Mitsuru just grinned and attacked Minako. Ryoji was quick to block the attack for Minako.<p>

"She's not Mitsuru." He said seriously as he tried to make Mitsuru back up using his sickle. "They're not human. They're shadows." He continued and the fake Mitsuru was the first one to reveal its true form.

Seeing the shadow made Minako more worried as she tried to approach Ken and the mother strangling him. However this time, the fake Akihiko and Shinjiro attacked her. Minako blocked fake Shinjiro's attack using the naginata Ryoji gave her earlier and stepped back to avoid fake Akihiko's punches. Fake Shinjiro quickly followed the punch with another blow using his axe which Minako barely evaded. Seeing Minako struggle, Ryoji transformed to his shadow form again to access his full strength giving a deadly blow to the shadow he was facing then he rushed in front of Minako in time to block a combined attack from the two fake boys. The fake boys suddenly made a painful, screeching sound as they revealed their real form.

"I'll take care of these two, help Ken." Shadow Ryoji instructed and Minako nodded as she lunged towards Ken's mom, the naginata in hand. Minako was about to slash the hand strangling Ken when another arm appeared from the mom's body, revealing that she's a shadow too. In a way, this made Minako more confident as she slashed the extra arm and without wasting any more time, she slashed the hand strangling Ken releasing him from its grip as he fell to the ground, coughing. Minako momentarily took her eyes off the shadow as she helped Ken up.

"Are you okay Ken?" she asked and Ken nodded, still coughing. Minako turned her attention back to the fake mom that made an even louder screeching sound transforming into an even bigger shadow reminiscent of the shadows that appear during full moons. Minako knew that she won't be able to beat the big shadow by herself, she needed help but she knew that she couldn't show the boy that she was scared. She stood in front of Ken to protect him as she took a defensive stance while shadow Ryoji continued his battle against the smaller shadows.

* * *

><p>"He's fine now." The female doctor told the girls as Ken's breathing returned to normal and left the room. Fuuka and Yukari sighed in relief, happy to know that the boy's fine. It's been three hours since he collapsed in front of the cemetery and Akihiko's been calling them every hour since they told him, checking in on the boy.<p>

"Yukari-chan…" Fuuka started.

"Yeah?" the other girl answered.

"Aren't we going to tell the others about this? I mean, at least Mitsuru-senpai and Shinjiro-senpai?" the smaller girl asked and Yukari shook her head.

"Mitsuru-senpai is busy taking care of business so we shouldn't bother her with something like this unless it's serious. On the other hand, Shinjiro-senpai wouldn't answer his phone anyway and I'm sure he'll just get mad at us for disturbing him or something." Yukari said.

"Well we can at least send them a message." Fuuka said. She didn't want to keep this from others, especially from Mitsuru and Shinjiro. Yukari sighed in defeat.

"Go ahead and send Shinjiro-senpai a message but let's not bother Mitsuru-senpai until the doctor tells us that this is serious. She's busy." She said without looking back at Fuuka. Fuuka didn't like the idea but Yukari had a point so she sent a message to Shinjiro.

* * *

><p>Shinjiro cursed under his breath as heard his phone beep. He put the cookbook he was reading down and grabbed his phone. He opened the message and upon seeing what it said, he just placed the phone back on the table.<p>

"Annoying brats." He said but about 30 seconds later, he grabbed the phone and dialed Fuuka's number.

"How's the kid?" He asked.

"Sh-shinjiro-senpai?" Fuuka asked in surprise.

"Tch. How's the kid, Yamagishi?" Shinjiro asked annoyed. Fuuka recovered from shock and answered, "He's still unconscious but the doctor said he'd be okay."

"'Kay." Shinjiro said and hung up. Shinjiro sighed as he set the phone on the table and sat on the chair.

"Why don't you go visit the kid?" A voice in his head asked.

"Shut up." The boy said.

"You're worried 'bout the kid. I know you want to see him." The voice mocked.

"Tch. I said shut up Castor." Shinjiro told his persona. "Besides, the boy's fine." He continued and heard Castor laugh.

"See? You are worried about him." Castor said mocking the boy more. Shinjiro sighed and shook his head. He knew he wouldn't be able to stop Castor from mocking him so he just ignored him.

* * *

><p>"Ken you have to help them." Ken heard his persona say.<p>

"No, I can't. I-I couldn't save my mom even though I was right behind her. How can I help others if I can't even help my own mom?" Ken replied sadly as he watched Minako dodge and attack the shadow.

"Minako, perhaps we should try again some other time." Shadow Ryoji said as he panted heavily, blocking the two shadows' attack on him.

"No! We have to do this now." Minako insisted while also panting, dodging another attack from the shadow.

"We should at least take a run for it. These shadows are tough" Shadow Ryoji said as he fell on his back returning to his human form after getting hit by one of the shadows. Minako looked at him and nodded then she grabbed Ken's hand and the three started to run with the shadows after them.

"Over there!" Minako shouted as she pointed to an open shop. The three quickly headed to the shop with Ryoji locking the door behind him as they panted heavily. After catching his breath, Ryoji spoke up.

"Minako-san, I understand that you want to finish this now but you have to understand. We're both exhausted and those shadows are impossible to defeat." He said.

"You defeated one." Minako said flatly.

"Yeah, but not for long. That shadow will revive itself after a while." Ryoji said and Minako just frowned while Ken continued to be silent.

"I'm sorry Minako-san, but we really have to back down for now." Ryoji said as he pulled out another trafuri gem out of his pocket and threw it midair then a bright flash surrounded the store.

* * *

><p>Akihiko sat on the couch, restless. Even though Fuuka said that Ken's alright, he felt that something wasn't right. When he received the message about Ken turning pale an hour ago, he started to worry more.<p>

"That's it! I can't take this." Akihiko said as he looked at his phone. He stood up from his couch, grabbed the phone and left his apartment. On the way to the bus stop, his phone rang.

"Hello?" Akihiko asked.

"Is this Akihiko Sanada?" The caller asked.

"Yeah. Who's this?" Akihiko said as he stopped.

"Aya Kanzaki from the school. If you are available right now, I need you to drop by to fill in some forms so we can allow you to attend school by the start of the term." The caller explained. Akihiko sighed but agreed to come and headed for the school instead of Tatsumi Port Island as he originally intended.

* * *

><p>The bright flash finally died down and Ryoji was surprised to find themselves still in the store.<p>

"What? I-impossible!" Ryoji cried in disbelief while the sitting Minako spoke up.

"Of course we won't get out. This isn't your world. This is his." She said as she looked at Ken sitting in the corner. "I didn't realize as soon as we got here but the moment I saw how his mother was… you know… I knew this wasn't your world. This isn't your share of the sword." She continued. Ryoji looked down after realizing that Minako was right. This wasn't his world, it was Ken's. That's why they had to witness the nightmare of October 4th once more. Minako stood up from where she sat and kneeled in front of Ken.

"I need your help, Ken." She told the boy softly.

"I can't help you. I couldn't help my own mom." Ken replied. The sight of him was disheartening but Minako continued to convince the boy.

"We won't be able to get out of here without your help." She said while Ken just stayed silent. Ryoji approached knelt in front of him as well.

"Look at me Ken." He said but the boy refused to move. Ryoji sighed and said, "That wasn't your mom. Those weren't your friends. They're shadows of what happened in the past and this world is merely a mirror of your pain and anger. Even if you interfered earlier, that still won't save your real mom. What's done is done, we can't undo past events." Ken looked at the older boy then at Minako who smiled gently at him.

"But how can I help you if I don't have an evoker or a weapon?" Ken asked still looking at the two.

"This is your world Ken. You don't need an evoker to summon Kala-Nemi." Minako said and Ken stood, now full of determination.

"I don't want this scary place to remain in me forever so let's finish that shadow." He said. Ryoji and Minako smiled, nodded and they left the store.

"So what's our plan?" Ryoji asked as they stood on the empty street.

"I have a feeling that if we beat that shadow mom, we'll be able to get out. Isn't that right Ken?" Minako said and Ken nodded while picking a broom from the sidewalk.

"I'll lure her here then." Ryoji said as he transformed into his shadow form and took off.

Minutes later, Minako readied herself as she saw shadow Ryoji approach with the giant shadow in tow.

"Here it comes!" Minako shouted holding her naginata ready while Ken prepared himself with the broom as his weapon.

"Now!" Ken shouted and Ryoji moved out of the way. "Kala-Nemi!" He shouted once more and Kala-Nemi appeared right before him. Kala-Nemi used Vile Assault to attack the giant shadow and it fell on its back.

"Here's our chance! Let's do it!" he announced as he ran towards the shadow with the broom and the other two nodded and attacked as well.

* * *

><p>"Ken!" Yukari and Fuuka shouted gladly in unison as the boy jerked up from the bed.<p>

"Thank goodness you're awake!" Yukari said as she hugged the boy.

"Are you okay Ken-kun?" Fuuka asked with tears in her eyes. Ken nodded with a smile as his breathing returned to normal.

"W-where are we?" Ken asked the two.

"At the hospital, you collapsed earlier." Yukari said with a frown.

"Oh…" Ken frowned a bit. "I'm sorry to have worried you." Ken said bowing his head. Whether it was merely a dream or not, Ken didn't know but it didn't matter to him anymore. He looked out the window, up the night sky.

"Minako-san, Ryoji-san…. Thank you." He said in his mind then smiled.

* * *

><p>A bright flash filled Minato's surrounding and Ryoji reappeared.<p>

"You guys took a while." Minato said flatly.

"Sorry." Minako said while panting heavily.

"So did you get it?" He asked.

"Ryoji's no. Ken's yes." Minako said.

"What do you mean?" Minato asked, confused.

"We didn't get Ryoji's fragment of the sword but we got Ken's." Minako said with a smile.

"So you got Ken's piece but not Ryoji's? How can we leave then?" Minato asked.

"I think we can." Minako said after thinking for a while. "Maybe it's just not Ryoji's turn yet. I'm willing to take my chances of going now if you are, Minato-ni." She continued.

"I've been ready. I just waited for you." Minato said while Ryoji smiled at the twins.

"Well then, let's get started." The shadow said while Minako cheered on, full of excitement.

* * *

><p>Well, another chapter done and I managed to make it shorter than the previous chapter.<p>

I tried my best to make this as discreet as possible considering the nature of the events in the story.

I'll be honest, I didn't intend this chapter to turn out the way it did nor did I plan for Ken's fragment to go first. I really planned for Ryoji to be first so right now, I'm sort of winging it already which means it'll probably take me longer to finish the next chapters.

Thank you so much for those who read and appreciate my fanfiction. Thanks so much for the reviews as well, they're very much appreciated.

A quick preview for the next chapter – Plenty of Akihiko. It won't be as serious as the previous chapters and sorry, it will be longer than this one.


	6. Chapter 6 Jack Rabbits

Chapter 6: Jack Rabbits

"Minato-ni…" Minako whispered.

"Hmm?" Minato replied as the twins listened to Ryoji chanting something that Minato thinks could possibly be gibberish.

"What's Ryoji saying?" Minako asked in a whisper. Minato didn't answer immediately as he listened to Ryoji.

"Something about an old stick eating poop on a chair and a can of sardines doing back flips." Minato said seriously while Minako held in her laughter. Ryoji on the other hand, continued his chanting of some sort of gibberish that really sounded like Minato had said. After a few more minutes, as Ryoji continued to chant, a bright flash engulfed the room.

* * *

><p>"R-really? Can I talk to him now?" Akihiko asked gladly after hearing that Ken had already woken up.<p>

"Okay, just a second." Yukari said and gave the phone to Ken who was sitting on the bed.

"Hello Sanada-san." He said.

"Ken! How are you feeling now?" Akihiko asked.

"A bit tired." Ken said.

"I'm sorry. I was gonna go there but the university called me." The boxer said.

"It's okay. I mean, I'm not really in a bad condition or anything. I'm just tired because I wasn't able to sleep well last night." Ken explained.

"Did you have another dream similar to the one you told me?" Akihiko asked again. Ken looked at the two girls who were chatting across the room.

"Yeah. A lot actually." The boy said weakly. "I even dreamt about the accident years ago, the one involving Aragaki-san's persona going out of control." He continued still as softly as he can so the girls wouldn't hear him. Akihiko on the other hand was speechless. He didn't know what to say about that incident. He suddenly recalled how he failed to stop the berserk persona from attacking and threw up after the incident.

"I-I'm sorry." Akihiko said apologetically.

"It's alright Sanada-san. It was all in the past. It's already done. All we can do now is move on." The boy said maturely much to Akihiko's surprise. "Well, I have to go now. The doctor's here." Ken said.

"Okay. Call me if you need anything." Akihiko said and they both hung up. Akihiko smiled as he put the phone down and looked at a picture of Minako sitting on the table. "He's really maturing now, isn't he?" He said with a smile then went to bed.

* * *

><p>Theodore sat quietly in his room as he checked the clock. It was 9 in the evening already and he just finished cleaning his master's car and doing numerous other tasks for him. He took the Jack Brothers dolls he had and smiled at them. They were important to him especially the Jack Frost doll given to him by his dear Minako-sama.<p>

"I hope you two would be enough." He said then heard a knock on his door.

"Theo, the master wants to see you." Margaret said from the outside.

"I'll be right there." Theodore said as he stood up still holding the dolls.

"Also, I'm about to take the trash out so I have to come in." She continued and Theo laid the dolls quickly on his table and opened the door.

"What took you so long?" Margaret asked her brother.

"I had to fix something" Theodore said as he quickly went to his master's room.

"Hmmm?" Margaret wondered as she picked up the things on the floor and left the room.

* * *

><p>"Are you sure it's okay that we left Ken-kun in the hospital alone?" Fuuka asked as she and Yukari walked around Paulownia Mall.<p>

"Well, we don't really have a choice. The doctor said she wanted to observe Ken for the next 24 hours or so." Yukari replied.

"Well one of us could've stayed with him." Fuuka said.

"Well I guess—" Yukari paused as her eyes widened. "OH MY GOSH!" she shouted.

"What's wrong Yukari-chan?" Fuuka asked, worried.

"OH MY GOSH! OH MY GOSH!" Yukari shouted again as she ran towards the trash in the entrance of an alley. Fuuka looked at her friend, confused and worried then walked up to her friend who was now trying to grab something from the dumpster.

"IT'S SO CUTE!" Yukari squealed as she pulled out her target and squeezed it repeatedly.

"Y-yukari-chan… You do realize where you got that right?" Fuuka asked as she looked at Yukari.

"Yeah, but it's sooooo cute." Yukari said, a bit calmly this time. "It'll be good as new after I wash it." She continued.

"Why don't we just get a new one?" Fuuka asked.

"They don't have this available anymore and it was very hard to get one when they had it." Yukari replied as she started walking.

"O-okay, I guess." Fuuka said as she followed the taller girl.

* * *

><p>Theodore sighed as he finally finished the last entry on his list of tasks his master gave him.<p>

"I'm finally done." He said. "Now all I have to do is report to master." He continued as he turned the knob of a door in an alley in Paulownia mall. As he stepped in, he was greeted by one of his older sisters.

"Hello Theo." The girl said.

"Hello Elizabeth. Is the master inside?" He asked.

"Yes, he is actually waiting for you." Elizabeth said and Theodore went inside their master's office. Inside, Igor sat quietly holding a pen while reading a document.

"Master, I have finished all the tasks you asked me to do." Theodore said as he closed the door behind him. Igor looked up at him, grinning.

"Good. Now Theodore, come closer." Igor said. Theodore came closer to his master's table while looking at him. He didn't know what was going to happen but somehow, Theodore had a very unsettling feeling.

Igor put the pen down and looked up at Theodore and asked, "Do you know what I'm reading right now?" Theodore shook his head.

"Do you know what these stacks of papers here are for?" Igor asked again and the man shook his head once more. "Take a look at them." The eerie man said. Theodore knew that this was an order and so he looked at the stacks of papers without asking any questions.

"These are contracts!" Theodore exclaimed and Igor's grin grew wider.

"Indeed." He said while Theodore just kept silent, not sure where his master was trying to go with their conversation.

"Now tell me Theodore, how many guests have we had already?" Igor asked, looking at him.

"We've had so many, I've lost count." Theodore frowned.

"How many of them found a way to reverse the outcome once they fulfill their contract?" the man with the long nose once again asked.

"None." Theodore replied sadly.

"Yes." Igor said as he stood up and faced his assistant. "There has been no one until now!" He exclaimed, grin growing even wider. The excitement his master showed made Theodore jump a little. He knew how a lot of things got his master excited but not this much. "

Here, in my hand, are the contracts!" Igor said with his big, eerie grin giving the contracts to Theodore who looked at it.

"These are Master Minako and Master Minato's contracts." Theodore said uneasily. Deep down, he knew he was helping the two defy their fates and he was hoping that he would be able to do so without his master knowing.

"Yes, those are their contracts. You can't keep anything from me Theodore. I know everything." Igor said looking eerily at his assistant which in turn, made Theodore uncomfortable. No matter how long he's been serving Igor, that eerie look still made the man uneasy.

"Never in my existence had I ever witnessed any of our guests attempt to reverse their fates." He paused as he sat back down on his chair. "Whether they succeed or fail, I want to witness what happens." He paused then continued. "Now go back to your room. I believe a surprise is in store for you." Igor said as he picked the book on his table and started reading it. Theodore bowed and quickly left the room.

* * *

><p>It was 3 in the morning when Minako slowly opened her eyes, she was groggy and she didn't know exactly where she was.<p>

"Something… smells… bad…" She said as she sat up from where she lay and looked around her.

"Ack! How did I end up here?" She exclaimed as she quickly stood up.

"Ewww… Now, I'm stinky too. I have to get back to the dorm to take a shower." She said as she started to walk and suddenly, "Ahhhh!" Minako fell and landed on more garbage.

"Ow, ow, ow." She said as she stood up and looked at the dumpster in front of her.

"Okay…. Either that dumpster is really tall or I'm small." She said and started running trying to find a way to see herself. She stopped in front of a glass window of a familiar store and gasped at her own reflection.

"OH MY GOODNESS!" She exclaimed.

* * *

><p>"Where is it? Where is it?" Theodore asked as he frantically and noisily rummaged his room trying to find something. Elizabeth knocked on his door upon hearing noise from her brother's room.<p>

"Theo, what's going on in there?" She asked and Theodore opened the door.

"I'm looking for something." Theodore said.

"Yeah, I can see that." Elizabeth said as she took a peek at Theodore's messy room.

"What are you looking for? Maybe I've seen it." The girl asked.

"It's my Jack Brothers dolls. I'm sure I left them here on my table." Theodore said, worried as he resumed looking for the dolls. "They're very important." He said.

"I see. I'll help you look for them after we get some rest." Elizabeth said as she rubbed her eyes watching her brother searching in panic.

"No! I can't rest until I find them." Theodore said loudly as he kept searching.

"Okay, okay, but keep it down, you might wake Margaret." Elizabeth said and this made her younger brother stop for a moment.

"Margaret!" Theo cried and walked out of his room hurriedly. Elizabeth sighed and followed him in front of Margaret's room. "Margaret, please open the door!" Theodore said as he knocked loudly on the door.

"Theo, you know how Margaret hates being disturbed." His sister said but he kept knocking and suddenly the door opened.

"_**What**_is it?" The oldest sibling asked, obviously annoyed.

"My Jack Brothers dolls." Theodore said with a questioning look.

"How many times do I have to tell you never to disturb me when I'm in my room?" Margaret asked folding her arms.

"But my Jack Brothers dolls…" Theodore frowned.

"What about those?" Margaret asked as she leaned on her door.

"Where are they?" Theodore asked. "I threw them away." Margaret said flatly.

"YOU DID WHAT? Why?" Theodore asked.

"Well I told you, I was going to take the trash out." Margaret explained.

"But they're not trash!" Theodore said, annoyed this time.

"Then you shouldn't have left it among the trash lying on the floor." Margaret said.

"But I didn't! I left it on my table" Theodore said defensively.

"Now, now you two, don't fight." Elizabeth said in a tired voice.

"But I need those!" Theodore insisted.

"Well it's not my fault it ended up among your trash. Maybe this wouldn't happen if your room was tidy." Margaret said. Theodore scrunched his eyebrows and sighed.

"What time does garbage truck come by?" He asked.

"4 am." Elizabeth said and Theodore looked at his watch. It was a 5 minutes before 4 in the morning. He gasped and quickly ran outside heading for the dumpster outside while his sisters just looked at each other and went back to their rooms.

* * *

><p>"H-how?" Minako asked as she sat behind the dumpster. After a while, she heard someone approaching and quickly hid behind the trash bags beside the dumpster.<p>

"Please be here. Please be here." A male voice said as he started to search the dumpster.

"That voice sounds familiar." Minako thought. Then another sound came, it was the sound of a truck pulling up.

"Oh no! Don't tell me that the garbage collectors are here already." She thought.

"Morning." One of the men that went out of the truck said while looking at Theodore weirdly as the latter searched through the garbage. Theodore jumped in surprise when he saw them.

"I-I'm sorry. I was just trying to look for something but please, proceed with your job." He said as he stepped back. "Where could it be?" Theodore asked himself as he watched the men move the piles of garbage into the truck.

"Well, that's about everything. Time to head to the dump." One man said as they got into the truck then they drove off. Theodore frowned still thinking where his Jack Brothers dolls were when heard someone shout.

"Theo!" Minako called out while she was stuck in between two garbage bags. "Theo help!" She shouted. Theodore's eyes widened and he gasped. He was frozen with shock for a while but as soon as he got back to his senses he started running after the garbage truck which was now almost out of sight.

* * *

><p>Ryoji slowly opened his eyes and looked around.<p>

"Huh? Where am I?" He thought as he continued to look around.

"How did I end up here?" He asked himself. He continued to look around the empty room.

"No way… Only Minato and Minako should have been sent back. So why am I here?" He asked weakly as he continued to look at his surroundings which looked big.

"Why is… everything… so big? Am I in a giant's house?" He wondered when a door opened.

"Wait! It's-!" He said, his eyes widening after seeing who was approaching.

* * *

><p>"We're sorry Koro-chan, but we really can't take you with us. They don't allow dogs in the hospital." Fuuka told the whining dog.<p>

"Yeah but we promise we'll bring you a tasty treat Koro-chan so cheer up." Yukari said as she put her shoes on while Koromaru continued to whine. Fuuka looked at the dog while frowning.

"We're really sorry Koro-chan. We'll just say hi to Ken for you." The girl said and they left the dorm.

A few minutes later, "I feel so bad for Koro-chan. He really wants to go with us." Fuuka said to the taller girl.

"I know" Yukari said as they walked to the train station.

"Do you think they'll release Ken today?" Fuuka asked.

"I hope so. I mean if they don't release him yet, that would mean something is wrong." Yukari said.

"It's weird though, I mean Ken-kun seems to be fine, aside from looking tired, that is." Fuuka said. "Do you think something could possibly be bothering him?" She asked the taller girl.

"Maybe. But it's very hard to tell considering how he keeps a lot from us." Yukari said.

"If Minako-chan was here though, I'm sure she'd be able to help him if he had a problem." Fuuka said.

"You're right. Things would be so much more fun if she was here" Yukari said. After this, the two fell silent as they entered the train station. Suddenly, Yukari laughed. Fuuka looked at her confused.

"Why are you laughing Yukari-chan?" Fuuka asked.

"Do you remember that time when the girls from our school found out that Minako was Akihiko-senpai's girlfriend?" Yukari asked as she continued to laugh and Fuuka thought for a while then started giggling.

"Yeah, she came home covered in garbage to hide from the all the fangirls that afternoon." Fuuka said.

"Yeah and remember the time when she chased and hit Junpei with a broom after he teased her?" Yukari said still laughing heartily.

"Yeah. Junpei complained about it for a month." Fuuka said when a man running, very fast, bumped into her. "Ouch." She said as she landed on her bottom.

"I'M SORRY FOR BUMPING ON YOU MISS!" Yukari shouted at the man running not really looking back.

"Are you okay Fuuka?" Yukari asked as she helped her friend up.

"Yeah, I'm fine. That guy sure was in a hurry." Fuuka said and the two resumed their trip to the hospital.

* * *

><p>Minato slowly opened his eyes he was lying somewhere very comfortable and soft.<p>

"Ugh…" He groaned as he sat up. "Where am I?" He wondered and slowly stood up from where he was lying and he fell off.

"Ow. That hurt." Minato said then giggled. His eyes widened after hearing himself giggle. Considering what kind of person he was, he knew it was very unlike him to giggle.

"What the hell is wrong with me, hee-ho?" Minato's eyes grew even wider as he covered his mouth with his white hands. Wait, did he just see white hands? He quickly ran around the gigantic room trying to find something he can use to look at himself. He stopped in front of a full body mirror and stared at himself, wide-eyed.

"_**RYOJI!**_ I'M GONNA KILL YOU WHEN I SEE YOU! HEE-HO!" He shouted and once again covered his mouth after hearing "hee-ho" come out of his mouth.

* * *

><p>Akihiko stepped out of the bathroom when he saw something that shocked him.<p>

"W-what the hell?" Akihiko exclaimed as he saw Minako's rabbit doll walking on the floor. The rabbit doll stopped and looked up at him. Akihiko shook his head and quickly grabbed a book and tried to hit the rabbit doll which quickly ran. Akihiko chased it trying to hit it with the book. After moments of chaos and chasing, Akihiko finally caught the rabbit doll by its ears and looked closely at it as it shook its hands and feet frantically.

"Now… Who the hell are you?" Akihiko asked while looking closely at the rabbit doll. The rabbit doll didn't respond as it kept shaking its hands and feet.

"Who are you? Or maybe the question I should ask is _what_ are you?" Akihiko asked again but the rabbit doll didn't answer. Akihiko sighed and held the rabbit doll using his other hand.

"If you don't tell me who you are, I swear I'm gonna rip you apart." Akihiko warned but noticed that the rabbit doll's entire body was now twitching while looking down. Akihiko looked down and noticed that the only piece of cloth covering him was lying on the floor. Akihiko felt embarrassed as he dropped the rabbit doll and quickly took the towel running to the bathroom while the rabbit doll lay on the floor still twitching.

"MOTHER OF ALL MATERNAL BEINGS!" Ryoji thought. "Of all the things I can possibly see, _it had to be __**that**_!" He shivered after remembering what just happened and shook his head. "Oh God, please… Make me forget that." He begged then he heard a door opening. Akihiko stepped out, now fully clothed. Akihiko approached again and grabbed the rabbit doll.

"Okay. Who and what are you?" Akihiko asked more calmly while grabbing the doll and placing it on the table.

"Ryoji." Ryoji said.

"Well? I'm waiting." Akihiko said as he stared at the doll.

"Are you deaf? It's me, Ryoji." Ryoji said again. Akihiko just stared at him as if he didn't hear him.

"So I'm mute now?" Ryoji told himself and sighed. "I can't believe I'm doing this." He said.

"Huh?" Akihiko looked at the rabbit doll weirdly as it moved. "Oh. Okay, so you can't speak." Akihiko said as he watched the doll form a letter using its arms and legs.

"R…." Akihiko said then the rabbit doll continued. "Y..." Akihiko said and continued.

"U…" He said but the rabbit doll shook its head. "It looks like a U." Akihiko said. The rabbit doll shook its head and sighed. Then it turned away from Akihiko and formed an O using his butt.

"Ohh… Okay. O…." Then it continued to spell using its butt.

"Okay. R… Y…. O… J…. I…?" The gray haired boy asked, confused as the rabbit doll nodded. Akihiko thought for a while and gasped.

"RYOJI?" He gasped. The rabbit doll nodded.

* * *

><p>Koromaru lay quietly on the floor by the entrance of the dorm. He really wanted to see Ken but Yukari and Fuuka refused to take him with them. Times like this made the dog hate being a dog. He whimpered out of sadness and started to drift off to sleep when he heard a weird sound from upstairs. The dog ran up the stairs trying to follow the sound. The said sound brought him to the third floor, in front of Yukari's room and he started barking.<p>

"Koromaru hee-ho!" He heard a voice from the other side of the room. He recognized this voice to be Minato's and started to claw on the door.

"Koromaru, open the door!" Minato ordered. Koromaru barked and kept clawing on the door.

"Jump and turn the knob using your fangs." Minato ordered. Koromaru barked and moved back a little. He jumped on the door and tried turn the knob using his teeth but failed. He tried this several more times without success.

"Koromaru, stop. The door is locked from in here." Minato said with a giggle and the dog whined. "Sorry, I didn't notice it sooner." The boy said.

"Looks like we're gonna have to wait for Yukari to get back, hee-ho." He continued and Koromaru lay down in front of the door.

* * *

><p>Akihiko sighed as he slumped on a chair, still trying to grasp what he just found out.<p>

"Are you really Ryoji?" He asked and the rabbit doll nodded.

"How did you end up like that?" The boxer asked as he looked at the rabbit doll that raised its hands to motion that he didn't know. Akihiko sighed.

"Okay. First, promise me that you'll keep the incident earlier between us." Akihiko told Ryoji who waved his hands frantically and pointed to his mouth.

"Oh yeah, you can't talk." He said and Ryoji nodded again. After a while, Ryoji started shaking his hands and ears frantically which Akihiko noticed.

"Are you trying to tell me something?" Akihiko asked to which Ryoji quickly nodded.

"Okay. Hold on." The boy said as he took a pen and paper from his drawer. "Here." He said as he laid the pen and paper on the table. Ryoji, with all his strength carried the pen and started to write on the paper. After a while, he showed the paper to Akihiko who read it.

"So you want me to call someone called Theodore?" He asked and Ryoji nodded.

"Okay, I just have a few questions. One, who is he and two, how would I call him?" Akihiko asked question after question. Ryoji took the paper from him and started writing again.

"I see. So he's a friend of Minako's." Akihiko said. Akihiko didn't say or show it but Ryoji sensed that the boy was jealous as he sighed.

"Wha-? I'm not jealous!" Akihiko said defensively as he saw the note the rabbit doll was holding.

"I told you I'm not jealous. Like you said, there's nothing to be jealous about." The gray haired boxer told the rabbit doll while trying to act cool.

"What do you want me to tell him?" he asked after a while and Ryoji wrote something.

"Wait, Minako and Minato are back? But how?" Akihiko asked looking at the doll very confused. Ryoji sighed as he wrote on a new piece of paper.

"Good point. I guess it'll have to wait." Akihiko said as he grabbed his phone and dialed a number.

"Hey Fuuka, can you give me Theodore's number?" Akihiko asked.

"Of course! I'll send it to you." The blue haired girl replied. "I hope you don't mind me asking but why do you need his number, senpai?" Fuuka asked.

"W-well…" Akihiko paused, not sure if he should mention what Ryoji wrote on the paper or even Ryoji himself. "I just have to ask him something important." Akihiko quickly said. "Well, thanks. I have to go. Bye." He continued and hung up.

* * *

><p>"Who was that?" Yukari asked the shorter girl as they entered the hospital.<p>

"It was Akihiko-senpai. He was asking for Theo's number." Fuuka said and the taller girl asked. "Why?"

"He said he needed to ask him something important." Fuuka explained.

"Did he say what it was?" Yukari asked again to which the smaller girl shook her head. "I see." Yukari said.

"Oh. You're Ken Amada's guardians right?" The doctor from yesterday asked as she saw them.

"Yeah." Yukari quickly said as they stopped walking to talk to her. She and Fuuka were worried but at the same time, hoping that the doctor would give them good news.

"Well I have good news for you. He can go home now. All you need to do is sign the papers in my office." The female doctor said with a smile as she saw the two girls fill with joy.

"You can go see him now. I'll bring the papers in his room." She continued.

"Thank you." The girls said in unison as they hurriedly went to Ken's hospital room. As Fuuka opened the door, they found Ken already dressed, sitting on the bed and watching his favorite show.

"Hey Ken!" Yukari greeted cheerfully.

"Hello." Ken greeted with a smile.

"How are you feeling today?" Fuuka asked.

"So much better." Ken said as he turned the television off.

"The doctor said you can go home now." Yukari said as she sat down. Ken nodded.

"She told me earlier when she dropped by." The young boy said and the three of them smiled at each other. After a while, someone knocks on the door.

"Here are the papers." The doctor said as she entered the room.

"I'll sign it." Yukari said as she took the paper. "Here you go." Yukari said with a smile. The doctor smiled back then looked at young boy.

"Well, you can go home now. Just don't push yourself too hard. Sleep is important." She said then left the room.

"We should celebrate." Yukari suggested and the two just nodded. "Where do you want to eat Ken?" She asked the younger boy.

"How about we go to the Beef Bowl Place? Their beef bowls are great. It can help make us stronger too." Ken suggested while the two girls listened to him, smiling. "The meat and the sauce are—" He stopped when he noticed the two girls giggling.

"You're starting to sound like Akihiko-senpai." Yukari said to the confused boy who started to blush. "What do you think Fuuka, should we follow Akihi- I mean Ken's suggestion?" Yukari asked, still giggling.

"Yeah, we can eat there. Then we can go to the Sweet Shop for dessert." Fuuka said.

"Well then, let's go!" Yukari said cheerfully and the three left the hospital.

* * *

><p>Minako managed to get the garbage bag on top of her off but the truck hit a hump and she fell off the truck. She rolled on the ground as she landed.<p>

"Ow, ow, ow…" She said as she slowly stood up when she finally stopped rolling. She looked around the unfamiliar neighborhood she landed on.

"Oh dear… Where am I?" She asked herself, frowning. She started walking and looking around the strange place. Although she was unlucky to wake up in the dumpster, ending up in a garbage truck stuck between two smelly bags of garbage and falling off an unfamiliar neighborhood, she still felt lucky that there were no people around the said neighborhood otherwise, they may have gone after her already or something, considering how she looked like right now. She was walking quietly still looking around, hoping to maybe find Theodore whom she saw run after the truck earlier.

"Theo sure is a fast runner but I wish he did catch up." Minako thought.

"Huh? Someone's coming!" Minako said softly and quickly ran to the side of the street and sat there motionless. She was shocked as she saw the person coming from the corner.

"T-takaya?" She thought and at the same time prayed that he'd ignore her.

"Hmmm?" Takaya looked at her.

"What an ugly doll." He continued and pulled something from his pocket. Minako was really scared and continuously prayed in her mind that he goes away soon.

"Let's make you pretty." Takaya said, revealing a marker and started drawing on the girl's pumpkin face. Takaya laughed hysterically as he did so catching the attention of a couple of girls passing by. Takaya stopped laughing upon noticing the two girls looking at him weirdly.

"What are you looking at? You got a problem with me?" He asked looking at the two girls maniacally who both got scared and ran away. Takaya started laughing again and turned back to the pumpkin-like doll before him.

"Where were we?" He asked then continued drawing. After a while he put the marker back into his pocket.

"There we go. Much better. Now, let's go." He laughed again and took the doll with him, holding it by its cape dragging it. Minako was in pain. Her backside was scraping on the ground and she was choking as Takaya dragged her by the cape she wore.

* * *

><p>"Wait…" Theodore said as he panted, walking now after running a good distance trying to catch up with the garbage truck. "For me…" he continued as the garbage truck disappeared from his sight. Theodore fell to his knees both in defeat and fatigue.<p>

"No. No. No. I have to keep going for Minako-sama." He said and his phone rang.

"Hello?" He answered.

"Is this Theodore?" The voice asked.

"Yes… who… is… this?" Theodore asked in between breaths.

"I'm Akihiko Sanada. I'm a friend of the Arisato's." Akihiko said as he introduced himself.

"I know who you are. Minako-sama talked about you a lot." Theodore replied. "So how may I help you?" He asked.

"Well, Ryoji wanted me to tell you that he's already sent the twins back. He wanted to check if they're already with you." Akihiko explained.

"Yes, I know he's already sent them back. However, there's a slight problem." Theodore said hesitating with his last statement.

"Is Ryoji with you?" He asked.

"Yeah, but he can't exactly talk right now." Akihiko said as he looked at the rabbit doll.

"I see. Can you at least put your phone on speaker so he can hear what I'm about to say?" Theodore requested.

"Alright, hold on." Akihiko said and Theodore heard a click. "There." Akihiko said.

"Well, the containers I have chosen for them. Well… They were thrown out by my sister by accident." He started.

"Ryoji's asking how you found out if you lost those." Akihiko said.

"Well… That's the bigger problem." Theodore said and paused trying to think of how to say what he was about to in a way that the people on the phone won't freak out. "I found Minako-sama in the garbage truck. I am currently in pursuit of the truck but I lost it a few minutes ago." He said.

"WHAT? Minako's in a truck full of garbage and you lost her?" Akihiko asked, freaking out.

"I-I'm sorry. I will not stop until I have retrieved her." Theodore said and heard the other boy sigh. There was a short pause before Akihiko spoke up once more.

"How about Minato?" He asked.

"I did not find him at the dumpster or the truck. Someone may have picked him up I'm afraid." Theodore said apologetically.

"Oh boy. This is way messed up." Akihiko said. "What are we gonna do Ryoji?" Theodore heard Akihiko ask Ryoji but he didn't hear a response from the latter.

"Okay. Ryoji said to call us as soon as you find Minako." Akihiko said. "I will." Theodore said then he hung up.

"Minako-sama, I will get you back." Theodore said, full of determination as he noticed a man pass by, dragging his Pyro Jack doll. The man was very thin with tattoos on his arms and he had long, blond, curly hair. He looked like a hippie. Somehow, Theodore thought the man looked familiar then he snapped back to reality as he went after the man.

* * *

><p>"Thank goodness!" Minako thought as she saw Theodore nearby and started waving her arms and legs frantically while making sure Takaya didn't see her move. "Ah! He saw us!" Minako thought and kept waving her arms and legs as she watched Theodore follow them.<p>

"Excuse me sir." Theodore said as he tapped Takaya on the shoulder.

"_What do you want_?" Takaya asked, annoyed.

"That doll. It's mine." Theodore said flatly and Takaya turned around to look at him.

"Oh yeah? You want this doll?" Takaya smirked as he lifted the doll high.

"Yes. Now, please return it to me." Theodore asked politely.

"Aren't you a little old to be playing with dolls?" Takaya mocked and Theodore just frowned.

"Well since you asked so nicely, I'll give it back to you. Here you go." He said and Theodore lit up. As he was about to grab the doll, Takaya pulled it away.

"Hahaha! Do you think I'm crazy enough to return this ugly thing to you so easily?" He asked laughing. "You can have it back if you can get it!" Takaya said as he threw the doll in a nearby river. Theodore gasped and jumped in after it. Takaya watched while laughing hysterically as the man jumped in the water to retrieve the doll.

"Pathetic." He said as he stopped laughing while looking at the man in disgust and left.

* * *

><p>"Okay. So we have a problem." Akihiko said as looked at Ryoji. "What do you suggest we do? I mean, we can't exactly just sit back here." He continued while the rabbit doll wrote on the piece of paper.<p>

"Yeah, even if you didn't suggest that I'd still go there as soon as I can." Akihiko said as he looked on the note.

"But—" Akihiko scowled and showed Ryoji his near-empty wallet. "As you can see, I don't have enough money right now." He said and the rabbit doll was writing again.

"I was planning to look for a job yesterday when I found out Ken was in the hospital. I was on my way there but the university called me so I had to use my money to go the university. I was going to look for a job today as well but you're here." Akihiko explained while Ryoji wrote on the paper.

"No. I can't just ask Mitsuru for money or something. I don't want to depend on her all the time." Akihiko said with a scowl. The rabbit doll sighed after this and wrote something once more.

"I guess so but the problem is I doubt they'd give me money on my first day or even let me skip on work for days." Akihiko explained while the rabbit was already writing.

"W-what?" Akihiko asked, a tint of red appearing on his cheeks. "No way!" Akihiko said and Ryoji showed him another note.

"I guess. Fine, I'll do it for Minako." He said as he sighed in defeat.

"Well then, I'm off to get a job. Try not to make any mess." Akihiko said as he was about to leave when Ryoji threw a paper at him.

"What the? Hey!" Akihiko complained as Ryoji showed another note.

"Fine. Let's go." He sighed. "But you're not gonna get a ride on my shoulder. Stay in my pocket." He continued as he grabbed the rabbit doll and stuffed it in his pocket, barely fitting then they left the apartment.

* * *

><p>"Are you alright Minako-sama?" Theodore asked weakly as he panted.<p>

"Oh thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Minako said and hugged the guy as soon as Takaya was no longer there. "My backside and my neck hurts but other than that, I'm okay." Minako said more calmly this time. Theodore sighed in relief.

"I'm glad to hear that. However, forgive me for saying this but you smell terrible Minako-sama." He said.

"I know, I know but you can't blame me. I've been in the dumpster then in a garbage truck." Minako said while looking at Theodore.

"And your face…." He paused. He didn't know the right word to describe it. "I hope we can remove the marker." He stated.

"Why? Does it look bad?" Minako asked, panicking.

"W-well…" Theodore started uncomfortably and quickly changed the subject. "We should head back to the Velvet Room." He said as he picked the Pyro Jack doll up holding her gently. Theodore started walking but paused for a while.

"What's the matter Theo?" Minako asked.

"Hmmm. It felt like I bumped into someone earlier while I was trying to run after the truck. I just don't remember if I really did." Theodore explained and Minako just stared at him.

"I guess it doesn't really matter anymore." Theodore said and continued to walk.

After a while, "By the way, was Minato-sama with you when you woke up?" Theodore asked the doll in his arms and Minako shook her head.

"I was alone in the dumpster when I woke up." Minako said. "I haven't really thought about him until now. I mean, first I woke up as Pyro Jack in the dumpster then I got stuck in between two garbage bags inside the garbage truck and fell off, dragged by Takaya then thrown at the river. I didn't really have time to think about him." Minako explained.

"So that was the name of the guy. Well I'll have to look for Minato-sama after I take care of you." Theodore said as he continued to walk in silence.

* * *

><p>"Wow! I'm so full!" Yukari said as she stretched her arms.<p>

"Me too." Fuuka said softly as the trio stopped in front of the dorm.

"But it was good." Yukari said with a smile while Ken and Fuuka agreed. Yukari was the one to open the door and she looked around.

"Huh? Where's Koromaru?" Ken asked. Whenever Koromaru was left alone, he'd lie down the entire time by the front door waiting for his friends but today, he wasn't there.

"Maybe he's upstairs." Fuuka suggested.

"Koro-chan! We're back! We have a special treat for you!" Yukari called. Koromaru jolted up from the third floor and ran down as fast as he could when he heard his friends call out his name.

"There you are Koromaru!" Ken said with a warm smile and the dog jumped over him, licking his face.

"Here Koro-chan, this is for you." Fuuka said as she pulled out a bag of treats for the dog from a paper bag. The white dog barked happily as he saw the treats for him. "Come on, I'll put some on your bowl." Fuuka said as she headed to the kitchen followed by the dog.

"I'm heading upstairs." Yukari said while Ken turned the TV on.

* * *

><p>Yukari looked at her room's door with an annoyed look as she saw scratches on it.<p>

"Koro-chan!" She shouted and after a while, Koromaru was beside her.

"Koro-chan, what did you do to my door?" She asked the dog with a frown and the dog just whined. "I'm not mad. It's just that, you shouldn't have done that." The girl said as she ruffled Koromaru's fur.

"Don't do it again, okay?" she said and the dog barked. Yukari patted the dog on the head and opened the door to her room.

"!" Yukari shouted. The two other occupants of the dorm heard this and immediately went upstairs.

"What's wrong Yukari-san?" Ken asked as Yukari pointed to her room. Ken and Fuuka looked at each other then inside.

"That's the Jack Frost doll you got from the dumpster yesterday, Yukari-chan." Fuuka said while looking at her weirdly.

"L-look at it again." Yukari said shaking and the two looked again.

"So… hungry… need… food…" The Jack Frost doll said in a trembling voice as it twitched on the ground. Fuuka screamed after this and both girls stood behind the younger boy who was frozen in fear while Koromaru barked.

"H…hi..." The Jack Frost doll said again as it crawled towards them. The three stepped back while Koromaru entered the room and licked the doll's face.

"N…nice…to… see you too… Koro…maru…" the Jack Frost doll said, still in a trembling voice.

"Wait... That voice!" Ken gasped as he recognized it. "M-minato-san?" He asked as he nervously approached the doll.

"H-hey…Ken...hee…ho…" The Jack Frost doll said as he continued to twitch.

"M-minato?" Yukari asked, slightly calmer now.

"Y…yeah…" The Jack Frost doll said then giggled.

"Are you sure you're Minato?" Yukari asked more doubtful after hearing the doll giggle.

"Y..yeah…" The doll said. "F-feed…me…" He said weakly as Ken helped him up.

"But how?" Fuuka asked.

"H..hungry…need..food…" Minato said weakly.

"Maybe we should feed him first." Ken said and the other two nodded while Koromaru barked. Yukari, still not convinced, told Ken to carry the doll downstairs.

"W-what do you want to eat Minato-kun?" Fuuka asked uncomfortably but the doll didn't answer. Fuuka looked at the fridge and took some leftover fish and rice and heated it up on the microwave. "Here you go." She said. The smell of the food, gave the doll enough energy to sit up and start eating by himself. The three occupants of the dorm looked at him weirdly as he ate the rice and fish hungrily and soon it was all gone, literally.

"H-he ate the entire fish, including the bone." Yukari said still looking at him.

"Do you have ice, hee-ho?" Minato asked still very weak. Fuuka went back to the fridge to get some ice. The three watched Minato, wide eyed with their mouths hanging open as he chewed on the ice like it was bubble gum. After a while he looked up at them.

"You want some?" He asked energetically and the three shook their heads. "Okay, more for me." He said as he continued to chew on the ice.

* * *

><p>"Well, it's already 3 in the afternoon." A man with long, wavy brown hair said as he looked at his watch. "However, I guess you can take the late shift. That is, if you're fine with that." He said.<p>

"What time is it?" Akihiko asked.

"6-11." The store owner said.

"W-well, can I get my pay after my shift?" Akihiko asked, slightly embarrassed.

"Sure." The owner said flatly.

"I-if you want, I can start now and work until 11." Akihiko offered.

"Nah. Just come back at 6 to replace Rei over there." He said as he pointed to the guy by the counter of the store. Akihiko nodded and thanked the store owner as he walked back to his apartment.

"That was easy." Akihiko said as he looked at the rabbit doll that nodded and gave Akihiko a piece of paper. Akihiko started blushing as he read the note.

"Yeah, but we did start looking for a job quite late. We'll have to wait till tomorrow to travel back to Port Island." He told the doll and heard a few girls giggle. Akihiko looked at the girls staring at him and blushed when he realized they saw him talking to a rabbit doll in his pocket. Akihiko placed his hand inside his pocket, pushing the rabbit doll deeper.

* * *

><p>"I see you got your Pyro Jack doll back." Elizabeth said as she saw her younger brother enter.<p>

"But it smells terrible. Wash it." Margaret ordered while reading a book and Theodore scowled at her. A few more doors later, Theodore finally reached his room and closed the door behind him, locking it.

"Here we are." He said to Minako who looked at his room.

"Your room's huge Theo!" She exclaimed.

"I guess it is." Theodore said.

"You should take a bath." He suggested and Minako nodded. Theodore brought the Pyro Jack doll in his bathroom. It was the same as his room, big. It had a tub, a shower and sink and a toilet bowl. Theodore placed Minako down on the counter as he filled the tub with water. As soon as the tub was full, he turned to Minako and was about to put her in it when Minako stopped him.

"If I'm going to take a bath, you have to stay out." Minako said. "I'm a girl, after all. I need my privacy." She said and Theodore left without protesting after laying Minako on the side of the tub. Minako grinned and jumped into the water. Theodore sat on his bed as he waited for Minako to finish bathing. It wasn't long before smoke started to come from the bathroom and fill his entire room.

"Theo, is everything alright in there?" Elizabeth asked from the outside as she knocked on the door.

"Y-yeah. I'm fine." Shouted Theodore then he entered the bathroom. "M-minako-sama, are you okay?" He asked in worry but the girl didn't respond. Theodore waved his hands in front of him to try and lessen the smoke near his face. He found Minako playing in the water which was now boiling.

"Minako-sama!" Theodore exclaimed as he approached the doll, worried.

"Theo, I told you to stay out while I took a bath." Minako said as if she wasn't in boiling water.

"Isn't the water scalding or hurting you?" Theo asked as he coughed.

"No, it's actually just the right temperature." Minako explained as she continued to take her bath in silence and Theodore sighed leaving the bathroom.

"She is Pyro Jack now after all… Sort of." Theodore said to himself as he waited for the girl to finish. After a while, Theodore was starting to doze off as he didn't sleep the previous night doing errands for his master and looking for the twins when he heard footsteps from the bathroom. Out came Minako who no longer smelled of trash but the marker on her face was still there. She was crying.

"W-what's the matter Minako-sama? Why are you crying?" Theodore asked as he approached the doll.

"The marker won't come off." The doll cried.

"It'll come off. We just need to wipe it off a bit harder." Theodore said as he picked up the doll and a piece of cloth and started wiping its face.

"Hmmm. I think we need something to get it off. Stay here, I'll get something." Theodore said as he laid the doll on his bed and left the room. Minutes later, Theodore came back with a vial of glowing blue liquid.

"What's that?" Minako asked as she looked at the glowing liquid.

"It's a special potion created by my sister, Margaret, to remove stains." Theodore said.

"Are you sure it'll work?" The Pyro Jack doll asked.

"Of course, this removes any kind of stain." Theodore said confidently and wiped the marker off the doll's face successfully this time. "Better." Theodore said with a smile.

"I'm hungry Theo." Minako said out of nowhere.

"What do you want to eat, Minako-sama?" The man asked.

"Hungry." Minako repeated as if she didn't hear Theodore.

"Well, what do you wish to eat?" Theodore asked again.

"HUNGRY! HUNGRY! HUNGRY! HUNGRY!" Minako started shouting rolling around Theodore's bed then stopped to look at the man. "_**HUUUUUNGRYYYYYYYY**_" The Pyro Jack doll said as it flared up. Theodore fell off the bed out of fear.

"O-okay!" He said and ran off.

* * *

><p>"Are you sure there's no more?" Minato asked.<p>

"Well, you already ate all of our ice. Yukari just put more water in the freezer so it will take a while before it solidifies." Fuuka said.

"I want more ice, hee-ho." Minato said, now getting used to the verbal tic, well, sort of. Yukari sighed and spoke up.

"I guess we can give you ice if you answer our questions. Are you really Minato?" She asked. The Jack Frost doll nodded while looking at the three who was staring at him.

"But how?" Yukari asked again. "I mean, you're supposed to be _dead_." She elaborated with regret.

"It's hard to explain. It's a long story, hee-ho." Minato said then giggled which made the three uncomfortable.

"How can we be sure that you are Minato-kun?" Fuuka asked.

"Koromaru knows me, hee-ho. He recognizes me." Minato said. "And I sound like Minato, don't I, hee-ho?" Minato continued.

"I guess so. Except for the hee-ho's and giggles." Yukari said.

"Have you seen my sister?" the doll asked.

"Minako-san?" Ken asked and the doll nodded. "Is she back too?" Ken asked hopefully.

"I think so, hee-ho. But I don't know what she exactly looks like right now." The doll explained while the three just shook their heads. "I want ice now, hee-ho." Minato asked so sweetly, it could've made Shinjiro and Junpei throw up if they were with them right now. Yukari sighed and turned to the youngest member of S.E.E.S.

"Ken, go buy some ice for him." She said and the boy nodded heading out of the dorm. Minutes after Ken left, Fuuka decided to get herself and Koromaru out of the dorm for a while.

"Well, I think Koro-chan wants to go for a walk." Fuuka started as she looked at Koromaru who whined.

"I don't think he wants to go for a walk tonight, Fuuka." Yukari said as she looked at the dog too.

"N-no! I can tell he wants to go for a walk. Come on Koro-chan." Fuuka said as she pulled the dog gently out of the kitchen while the white dog whined. "I'm sorry Koro-chan. I know you want to spend time with Minato-kun but he and Yukari-chan have to talk." Fuuka whispered as she apologized to the dog as they stepped out of the dorm.

* * *

><p>"Well, I didn't expect the store to have this much customer. Especially at night time. You're good for my business Sanada." The store owner said to Akihiko who was standing behind the counter. For each minute that passed in the store, more girls came in buying random, even useless stuff just to get to the counter and have a conversation with the boxer. Akihiko, like his usual self, felt very uncomfortable having the girls around. He wanted to give up and leave but for each time he tried, Ryoji showed him a piece of paper with Minako's name on it.<p>

"Well, excuse me for a while." The owner said and left Akihiko.

"So what's your name?" A girl said as she paid Akihiko.

"A-Akihiko Sanada." The gray haired boy replied awkwardly.

"Oh my gosh! You are so cute! Maybe we can hang out sometime." The girl said but before Akihiko could say anything the girl behind her pushed her aside.

"Move away!" The girl said to the other.

"So where are you from cutie-pie?" The new girl asked as she gave Akihiko the item she was about to purchase.

"Uhmm… Well…" Akihiko started, not really wanting to answer the question as he gave the girl her change.

"Okay! My turn!" The blond haired girl behind her said as she pushed the girl in front.

"Hey, maybe you want to go out on a date with me sometime?" She asked while Akihiko flatly refused. Girls continuously approached him, squealing on his face and asking him questions that made him very uncomfortable.

"This is going to be a _looong_ night." Akihiko thought as he looked at the clock on the wall.

* * *

><p>Yukari sat quietly, not really knowing how to start a conversation with Minato. Minato on the other hand, was his usual self, sans the appearance, hee-hos and giggles. He sat quietly on the table as he waited for the ice to arrive.<p>

"Minato…" Yukari finally started after a while but stopped. The Jack Frost doll stared at her waiting for her to talk.

"I miss you so much…" Yukari was surprised to hear this from her boyfriend. "I'm sorry I made you cry when I left." The boy continued, looking at the surprised girl in front of him.

"I…" Yukari tried to speak but her lips were trembling as she started to tear up.

"Come closer." Minato told the girl and she pulled herself closer to the table. Minato wiped the girl's tears away with his cold hands.

"Shhhhhh…. I'm here now." He whispered.

"I love you Yukari." He whispered once more, looking into her eyes.

"I love you too, Minato." Yukari said as she took the doll and hugged it as tight as she could.

* * *

><p>The next girl in the counter didn't ask Akihiko any questions, much to his surprise despite being glad that she didn't. She was a bit older that Akihiko with shoulder length brown hair and eyes. Suddenly, the girl grabbed Akihiko's right hand squeezing it as she placed money on his hand.<p>

"Y-you've already paid, miss." Akihiko said awkwardly and the girl leaned towards him.

"That's for you. I'll give you even more if you come home with me." She whispered which shocked Akihiko while pulling himself away from the girl. A mixture of embarrassment, anger and bitterness can be traced in the young man's face. He placed the money on the counter then spoke again.

"Please take your money and leave now." Akihiko said flatly and the girl looked at him, annoyed as she took her money and left the store. Akihiko sighed after this and felt something slapping his hand. He looked down and noticed the rabbit doll in his pocket slapping his hand with its ears. He looked around to check if anybody was looking and when he didn't see anybody around, he lifted the rabbit close to his face and looked at it.

"What the heck is your problem?" He whispered to which Ryoji showed him a piece of paper.

"Wha-? I'm not flirting with any of those girls! Minako's the only girl I love!" Akihiko said defensively and loudly without noticing it.

"Aren't you a bit old to talk to a rabbit doll or even own one?" The store owner said with a smile surprising the boxer. Akihiko didn't notice the older man return but he was now standing beside him in the corner.

"I-it's not mine!" Akihiko said blushing. "It's my girlfriend's." He continued.

"She must be lucky to have you for a boyfriend." The owner said as he wiped the counter.

"That's not true." Akihiko said seriously. "I'm the one who's lucky to have a girl like Minako love me." He continued full of honesty. The store owner stared at him for a while and laughed which made the younger man blush.

"Guess you're both lucky to have each other then." The owner told Akihiko as the two continued to work. After a while, the store was packed again with squealing females, both younger and older than Akihiko, flirting with him. Akihiko was glad that his shift was going to be over soon.

* * *

><p>"How much longer are we going to stay here Fuuka-san?" Ken asked the older girl as they sat outside the convenience store. After Fuuka and Koromaru left the dorm, they followed Ken to the convenience store where he was buying ice.<p>

"Just a while longer Ken. I think they need more time" Fuuka said.

"Aren't they gonna worry? I mean we've been gone for about two hours now." Ken asked again.

"I'm sure they won't notice it." Fuuka said reassuringly while the boy just nodded and the three remained silent for the rest of their stay in the store.

* * *

><p>"Ready to close up, Sanada?" The store owner asked to which the young boxer nodded with a smile. "Here's your pay." The owner said, handing a healthy amount of cash to the younger boy.<p>

"Whoa! T-this is too much!" Akihiko said but the owner just smiled.

"The store's been packed until closing thanks to you so you deserve that." He said and Akihiko took it hesitantly and left.

"Hello?" Akihiko asked as he answered his phone on the way back to his apartment.

"AKI!" the female voice shouted and a wide smile appeared on Akihiko's face.

"Minako!" He answered. "I'm so happy to hear your voice again, Minako!" Akihiko said, losing his composure.

"Me too Aki! I miss you so much!" Minako said happily.

"I'm glad Theodore found you." The gray haired boy said.

"Me too! So much happened to me today!" Minako said. "When can I see you Aki?" The girl asked.

"Tomorrow. I'll travel back to Port Island tomorrow morning with Ryoji." He said.

"Ryoji's with you?" Minako asked.

"Yeah, but it's hard to explain right now." Akihiko said.

"Where will we meet?" Minako asked. Akihiko thought for a while.

"How about the dorm?" Akihiko asked.

"Okay." Minako said.

"By the way, Ryoji's asking if Minato's with you already." The boxer said.

"No. Minato-ni's still missing. Theo left to look for him." Minako said.

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow. I love you, Minako." Akihiko said with a blush.

"I love you too Aki!" Minako said cheerfully and the two hung up.

"I guess we have to rest now so we can leave early tomorrow." Akihiko told the Ryoji as they entered the former's apartment while the rabbit doll nodded.

* * *

><p>Like always, I want to thank everyone for reading and taking interest in my fanfic despite each chapter being long.<p>

It seems that I fail greatly in making the chapters shorter so I apologize for that

I think I may have failed to put more Akihiko on this chapter either but I don't know.

Sorry if it took me a while to post the new chapter. Been busy lately but I'll try to finish the next one soon.

Quick Preview of the next chapter – Akihiko returns to the dorm.

Thank you, thank you so much. hohoho. ^.^


	7. Chapter 7 Reunion

Chapter 7: Reunion

"We're back!" Ken said as he, Fuuka and Koromaru entered the dorm while Koromaru barked.

"Welcome back." Yukari said softly as she sat on the couch reading a book while the Jack Frost doll slept soundly beside her. "You guys took a while." She continued as she set the book down. "He fell asleep already." She continued as she looked at Minato with a smile.

"That's our field leader." Fuuka said with a giggle.

"I'll just put the ice in the freezer then." Ken said as he headed for the kitchen.

"I didn't realize we were out so late." Fuuka said as she looked at her watch.

"Yeah, I was kind of worried because you were taking so long." Yukari said as she turned to the girl who was now sitting across her.

"No, it's nothing like that. I guess we just had fun talking." Fuuka said, making up an excuse.

"Really?" Yukari asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course!" Fuuka said loudly. Ken returned after a while and sat on another chair while Koromaru was starting to dose off on the floor.

"Well…" The boy started then the two girls looked at him. "What are we going to do now? I mean, aren't we going to tell the others about him?" He asked.

Fuuka and Yukari thought for quite some time as Ken waited for any suggestions from the two girls.

"Well, Mitsuru-senpai is busy, we've bothered Akihiko-senpai too much already and Shinjiro-senpai probably doesn't care so I don't really know what we should do." The blue haired girl replied.

"Yeah and Aigis is probably busy too. As for Junpei…" Yukari sighed as she mentioned the last name. "You get my point." She continued.

"But I think they deserve to know. I mean at least either Mitsuru-san or Sanada-san and I'm sure Aragaki-san cares. He's just pretending that he doesn't." Ken stated his opinion.

"Maybe we should give it some time." The taller girl suggested then the three fell silent. After a while, Yukari's phone started ringing and she picked it up.

"Hello senpai?" She greeted.

"Hey Yukari, how are you guys doing?" the famous boxer of Gekkoukan High asked.

"We're doing great senpai and Ken's back." Yukari replied.

"That's good news. Well I just called to let you guys know that I'll be heading there tomorrow. I'll arrive in the afternoon." Akihiko said.

"You're going back here tomorrow?" Yukari asked to be sure she heard him correctly.

"Yeah." Akihiko said.

"Don't get me wrong senpai, it's not that I don't want you around but why are you going back all of a sudden?" Yukari asked, curious.

"Well, I'll tell you guys tomorrow." Akihiko said.

"Okay, if you say so." Yukari said as she hung up. Fuuka and Ken looked at her as she put her phone in her pocket.

"Was that Sanada-san?" Ken asked and the brown haired girl nodded.

"He's gonna be here tomorrow afternoon." Yukari explained.

"Well, I guess we're gonna have to tell him about Minato-kun when he gets here." Fuuka said as she yawned.

"It's been a long day. We should rest." Yukari suggested as she gently picked up the Jack Frost doll and stood up with the two other human occupants of the dorm following her. When they reached the second floor they said good night to each other with Fuuka being the first to go upstairs while Yukari stopped as she noticed Ken staring at her.

"Is something wrong Ken?" She asked the younger boy who was staring at the sleeping Jack Frost doll in her arms.

"Oh…" Yukari said with a blush as she realized why the boy was staring at him. "I guess he still is a boy even though he's in a Jack Frost doll." Yukari said after a while then hesitantly handed the doll to Ken.

"Please look after him Ken." Yukari said with a smile and the younger boy nodded holding the Jack Frost doll then Yukari went to her room while Ken went to his own.

* * *

><p>"I know you said not worry Mitsuru but I really have an unsettling feeling towards that man." A sophisticated female voice said deep within Mitsuru's subconscious.<p>

"If you really think there is something to worry about, perhaps you should tell me what that something is." Mitsuru answered in an equally sophisticated tone.

"I'm not quite sure. I can't put my finger on it. I just know something is wrong with that man." The Persona said. "Haven't you wondered why you still haven't met the man you were supposed to meet until now? We've been here for a few days now." She continued.

"I understand your point however, as Max have stated Mr. Lockheart is busy with work at the moment." The redhead told her Persona.

"If he was busy with work, he wouldn't have invited you here." Artemisia said which seemed to make sense to the redhead now as she remained quiet. "Perhaps we should head back to Japan now." The Persona suggested after a while.

"No. I can't risk losing their business proposal to a rival company. It would be a great loss for the Kirijo Group if I did." Mitsuru said, flatly turning down her Persona's suggestion. Artemisia finally sighed in defeat as Mitsuru stood firm to her decision of staying in England until the deal was closed.

"Very well. However, please be careful with that man. I still do not trust him." The Persona told her master.

"Of course." Mitsuru simply said.

"And another thing, if you must, stay away from him." Artemisia said once more before finally disappearing into the depths of the redhead's mind. Mitsuru sighed then looked at her phone, dialing a number.

"Akihiko?" Then the redhead heard a groggy voice on the other end. "Forgive me for waking you up. Did something bad happen in the dorm?" The redhead asked and heard the boxer clear his throat.

"N-no. Why would you think that?" Akihiko asked.

"I've been trying to call them since yesterday to check on them but nobody's been answering. So I'm worried that something may be wrong with the three." Mitsuru explained.

"I'm sure it's nothing like that." She heard Akihiko say but it didn't sound convincing to her. She felt that the younger boy was keeping something from her.

"Are you hiding something from me Akihiko?" She asked.

"Of course not." Akihiko immediately answered. "So how's the business deal going?" he asked out of nowhere to change the topic of their conversation.

"Well, I still haven't met the person I'm supposed to meet. His assistant said that he's been busy and couldn't meet me." Mitsuru replied.

"Huh? If he's busy he shouldn't have invited you there." Akihiko pointed out. "You have your own business to run." He continued.

"I know but I have to be patient. I cannot rush things like this." Mitsuru explained and heard Akihiko sigh on the other end.

"Mitsuru, it's kind of late here. If you don't mind, I'm going back to sleep." Akihiko said uncomfortably. Mitsuru apologized again for waking the boxer up and said goodbye. Mitsuru sighed as she put the phone down and looked at her watch once more, still no sign of John Lockheart or even his assistant, Max.

* * *

><p>Akihiko sighed as he placed his phone back on the bedside table. Then he looked at the rabbit doll sitting inside a box on the table with a paper on its hand.<p>

"I really don't think it's a good idea keeping this from Mitsuru." He told the doll that started writing. He looked at the paper it was holding up and sighed again.

"I know, but she might execute me again if she finds out that I kept this from her." Akihiko reasoned out while Ryoji shook his rabbit head and raised another piece of paper.

"I guess." The boxer said. "But if Mitsuru finds out and decides to execute me, I will rip your head off." He continued while Ryoji shook his head as he raised another note.

"Stop using Minako as a threat." Akihiko told the rabbit doll which quickly raised a new paper.

"Don't push your luck, Ryoji. In case you forgot, I'm a boxer." Akihiko said in a threatening tone while the rabbit wrote another note.

"W-what? No! I can and I will beat you if you challenge me in a boxing match." Akihiko said while the rabbit raised another note which made the boxer speechless and blush. After a while, Ryoji raised another note and silently giggled.

"Give me that!" Akihiko said taking the paper from the doll and throwing it in the trash bin which was already full of used paper then he sighed and shook his head.

"That's it. We're going to get you a whiteboard and a marker tomorrow." He said. "Let's go back to bed. We have to be early tomorrow." The boxer continued as the rabbit doll nodded and lied down on the box which served as his bed.

* * *

><p>Minako tossed and turned on the bed while looking at the man lying on the floor, sleeping soundly. She felt bad sleeping on the man's bed while he slept on the floor, especially with the knowledge that this was the first time the man had some sleep after being up for a little over 28 hours. Minako knew that the man deserved to get proper sleep but he insisted that his "Minako-sama" should be the one sleeping in the bed instead.<p>

This indeed bothered her a lot. However, something else bothered her more.

It was her encounter with Takaya Sakaki. She really thought that the man died near the top of Tartarus the night of January 31st. Minako prayed that he did not remember anything about Tartarus, the Dark Hour or the Persona but most importantly, Junpei.

Minako and Minato were field leaders while Mitsuru was the leader of S.E.E.S. but they knew well that Junpei played a big part in foiling Strega's plans. Had he given up on Chidori, Strega's plans may have succeeded.

Minako sighed as she sat up from the huge bed. She wanted to wake Theodore up so he could bring her back to the dorm and warn the others about Takaya.

"Theodore…" She called out softly but the man just turned while sleeping on the floor. "Theodore…" She repeated but the man still did not wake up. She called out the man a few more times but finally gave up when she realized that the man wasn't responding.

Slowly, Minako started to cry softly. The last time she felt this helpless was when she found out about death being inside her and her brother.

"Minato-ni…. what am I gonna do?" Minako cried softly, wishing she had her brother with her. The Pyro Jack doll continued to cry softly for about half an hour when Theodore woke up.

"Minako-sama… what's the matter?" The man asked with a frown.

"Minato-ni…" Minako cried as Theodore sat on the bed quietly. "I want Minato-ni…" she cried out and the man in blue uniform held the Pyro Jack doll in his arms gently, cooing to soothe her.

* * *

><p>Minato woke up from his sleep. He was now lying on a small bed made of pillows. For some reason, he felt as if someone was calling him. That and it was hot. He rubbed his eyes as he sat up. He didn't recognize the room immediately as he looked around then saw the youngest member of S.E.E.S. sleeping on the bed next to him.<p>

"Ken!" the Jack Frost doll shouted but the boy didn't even turn.

"KEN!" Minato shouted again and this time the boy groaned but still didn't sit up. Then, Minato looked at one of the pillows beside him and threw it to the boy who immediately sat up.

"Featherman! Go go go!" The boy shouted as he shot up while Minato just looked at him, amused.

"W-what?" Ken asked after realizing that he was now awake.

"It's hot, hee-ho." Minato said while sitting on the floor. Ken shook his head as he looked at the Jack Frost doll sitting cutely on floor. In some way, the knowledge that this same doll was Minato was creeping the boy out.

"Minato-san, the aircon's already turned up high. If it was any colder, I might freeze to death." Ken reasoned out. The Jack Frost doll pouted.

"But it's really hot, hee-ho." The doll said so cutely it made Ken want to run out of the dorm.

"What do you want me to do?" Ken asked.

"Well if you can't turn the aircon higher, maybe you can put me inside the freezer." Minato suggested.

"What? No way! Yukari-san will kill me if I left you in there." Ken cried.

"I _will_ die of the heat if I stay here, hee-ho." Minato said, giving emphasis on "will".

"But—" Ken said.

"PUHHLLLEEAAASEEEEE…." The Jack Frost doll asked so sweetly with the cutest possible expression anybody or even anything could ever pull out. Ken finally sighed after this and took the doll with him downstairs. After a while, the two were in front of the fridge.

"A-are you sure about this Minato-san?" Ken asked the doll he was holding. Minato just nodded and Ken sighed. "Wait right here." Ken said as he put the doll on the table.

Ken opened the fridge then the freezer and moved all the meat and fish down, beside the vegetables, leftovers and such. Then, the young boy sighed as he turned to the Jack Frost doll.

"Yukari-san will get mad if she finds out I put you there." He said while Minato shook his head.

"I'll take responsibility for it, hee-ho." The older boy said as he giggled, clearly excited. Ken once again sighed as he placed the doll inside the freezer.

"Well, I guess I'm going back to bed." The brown haired boy said as he closed the freezer and the fridge.

* * *

><p>Ken groaned as he heard someone knock on his door. He looked at the wall clock, it was 7 am so the boy wondered who would knock on his door so early. As he stood up, he tripped on a bed of pillows on the floor and suddenly gasped. He realized that Yukari was the person knocking on his door and it was definitely because Minato was supposed to be here.<p>

"Ken? Are you okay in there?" he heard Yukari ask as Ken started to panic. "Ken, open the door!" Yukari said in a commanding tone and Ken immediately opened the door. "Are you okay?" Yukari asked, worried.

"I'm fine." Ken answered and immediately closed the door of his room.

"How's Minato?" Yukari asked.

"W-well…" Ken said while Yukari gave him a questioning look. "H-he's not here. He's downstairs." Ken said.

"Okay." Yukari said as she started to walk downstairs with Ken following her closely behind.

"Minato!" Yukari called out as soon as they were in the first floor of the dorm but there was no answer. Yukari looked back at Ken who was looking away nervously. Then Yukari heard a scratching sound from the kitchen. She quickly headed there with Ken still following quietly.

"Koro-chan! Why are you scratching on the fridge? Didn't I tell you not to do something like that again?" Yukari told the dog. Koromaru stopped scratching on the fridge then stared at the fridge and barked.

"Ken?" Yukari asked the boy with a raised eyebrow.

"B-but… Minato-san said he'd die of the heat outside." Ken explained, scared. Yukari opened the fridge then the freezer compartment to find a snoring Jack Frost doll inside.

"Minato…" Yukari called out softly. Minato slowly opened his eyes and stared at Yukari for a while.

"Good morning hee-ho!" He said energetically as he tried to get out of the freezer. Yukari helped him out and placed him on the table.

"Are you okay Minato? I mean, you were in the freezer." Yukari asked as she sat down while Ken sat in front of Yukari.

"Of course! I slept very well hee-ho!" Minato said energetically. "Thanks Ken!" he said turning to the boy behind him while Ken nodded, his nervousness disappearing. Yukari on the other hand, shook her head. She was starting to get a headache with all of this.

After a while, they hear Fuuka enter the kitchen. "Good morning everyone." She said with smile.

"Good morning, Fuuka-san." Ken said while Koromaru barked.

"Morning…" Yukari quickly followed as she rubbed the temples of her forehead.

"Good morning!" the Jack Frost doll said. This startled Fuuka as she temporarily forgot about all that has happened the previous evening.

"A-are you alright Fuuka-san?" Ken asked as he stood up from his chair as the blue-haired girl nodded.

"I want ice." Minato suddenly brought up which made Yukari sigh.

"This is going to be a loooong day." She said softly, rubbing her temples more.

* * *

><p>Akihiko yawned as he sat on a bench at the bus stop. He couldn't sleep very well last night because he was very excited to see his beloved Minako once again.<p>

"I can't wait to see Minako. Do you think she's excited to see me too?" Akihiko asked the doll, barely able to contain his excitement while the rabbit doll nodded. Akihiko's smile grew even wider upon seeing the doll nod.

"Maybe I should buy her a gift before we leave." Akihiko said as he turned around to leave when the rabbit doll in his bag slapped his hand. Akihiko looked at Ryoji and saw him pointing to the direction of the clock across the street. Akihiko sighed after seeing the time. It was 7:55 and the bus arrives at 8. Akihiko, although new to the place, knew very well that if he missed the said bus the next one would arrive at 10 so he sat back down on the bench, waiting for the bus to arrive.

"Don't slap my hand with your ears again." Akihiko told the rabbit doll as two school girls looked at him giggling. Akihiko turned red out of embarrassment and almost fell off the bench when he heard someone call out his name.

"Sanada-senpai?" The female voice called out again. Akihiko turned around to face the girl. Akihiko thought she looked familiar.

"I knew it! It is you Sanada-senpai." The brunette said.

"Uhh y-yeahh…" Akihiko answered uncomfortably. He wasn't sure if she was one of his fangirls, a former classmate or something. All he knew was that she was familiar.

"So what are you doing here Sanada-senpai?" The brunette asked once again. Somehow, the way that the girl approached him was different from how his insane fangirls would approach him. He was sure now. She wasn't one of them.

"Well, I'm staying here now. The university I'm going to attend to is somewhere around here." The boxer said comfortably.

"I see." The girl said as she fixed her eyeglasses.

"How about you?" Akihiko asked while slapping the rabbit doll back from his bag after it slapped his hand.

"I'm visiting my cousins." The girl said.

"I see. Well I guess I'll see you around." Akihiko said as he stood up after spotting the bus from a distance.

"Well not really. I'm leaving this afternoon for Kamikawa." The brunette said as she fixed her eyeglasses once more.

"When are you coming back to Port Island?" Akihiko asked, sure that he's seen the girl from around there.

"Sadly, I won't be going back there anymore. I'm staying with my grandparents in Kamikawa and I'll continue my studies there." She explained, ruefully.

"Oh, I see." Akihiko said.

"Well, it's for the best." The girl said with a smile. "Well looks like the bus is here. Goodbye Sanada-senpai. Please say hi to Mitsuru-senpai for me." The girl said as she walked away.

Akihiko sighed as he entered the bus and sat at the back. He slowly pulled out his hand from the bag and saw how red it was. Looking around, he carefully pulled the rabbit doll out from his bag.

"I told you to stop hitting me." Akihiko said weakly while the rabbit doll had its arms folded.

"Is this about me talking to that girl?" The boxer asked and Ryoji nodded.

"I am not flirting with her. I don't even know how to flirt." The gray haired boxer reasoned out but the rabbit doll just shook its head with its arms still folded.

"Stop it. I swear I am going to rip your head off." He said. Ryoji shook his head again his arms firmly folded.

"You're extremely hardheaded." Akihiko said weakly while the doll simply nodded. Then Ryoji took out a piece of paper and a pen from the bag.

"What? Do you really think Minako would believe you? She knows how bad I am at social situations." Akihiko said defensively, still making sure he kept his voice down. Ryoji looked around quietly as he slowly wrote something on a new paper.

"W-well! She was familiar! And she isn't one of those crazy girls who followed me around." Akihiko explained. Ryoji was starting to write something down again but Akihiko immediately took the paper and the pen from him.

"No more writing until we get back to Port Island" he said as he placed the paper on the pocket of his bag and the pen on his pants pocket.

* * *

><p>"What if they don't believe that it's me?" Minako asked as she ran around Theodore's room, panicking.<p>

"I don't see any reason why they won't believe it's you Minako-sama." Theodore answered as he tidied his bed then the panicking Pyro Jack doll stopped running and looked at the tall man.

"Theo, have you seen how I look like lately?" The doll asked with her hands on her hips.

"Well, you still look as cute as you were before." Theodore confidently said.

"IT'S NOT THE SAME! I LOOK LIKE A DOLL WITH A HUMONGOUS PUMPKIN HEAD AND POINTED HAT!" Minako said, shouting at the tall man. "IN CASE YOU FORGOT, I'M HUMAN!" She continued as she started to flare up while Theodore covered his ears.

"Now, now Minako-sama. There's no need for you to shout. I'm not deaf. I'm sure we'll figure out a way to make them believe that it is indeed you." Theodore said calmly. After a while, Minako finally calmed down, the flame forming around her body dissipating along with her anger.

"Now, if you'll excuse me. I have to go see master before we leave." Theodore said after seeing the Pyro Jack doll calm down. He then left the room and went to his master's office. He was about to knock on the door when his master greeted him from behind.

"You're early Theodore." The long-nosed man said.

"Good morning master." Theodore said as he bowed. "Do you have any errands for me today?" he asked.

"Well, you have an important task at hand don't you? The errands can wait." Igor said as he slowly unlocked the door to his office.

"Then I'll be going ahead. Excuse me master." Theodore said as he started to walk away.

"By the way, say hello to the Arisato twins for me." Igor said as his signature, eerie grin appeared on his face. Theodore flinched a little at this but continued to walk back to his room.

"Sorry if I kept you waiting Minako-sama." Theodore said as he entered the room where he found the Pyro Jack doll scanning through his most precious book.

"M-minako-sama! Please don't touch that." Theodore said as he tried to take the book from the girl.

"Tell me what this is for first." Minako said not letting go of the book.

"It's what I use to summon Personas and skills. Don't you remember? It's what I used during our battle to test your strength." Theodore explained.

"Oh." Minako sounded disappointed as she let go of the book. "I thought it was your diary. I was hoping to find something interesting." She continued.

"W-well…" Theodore said, starting to blush. "We should bring you to the dorm now so I can resume my search for your brother." He said, changing the subject as he grabbed the doll then the book and left the room in a hurry.

* * *

><p>"Can somebody please get the door?" Yukari shouted from the kitchen. "Not you Minato! You might freak out whoever's at the door!" She immediately continued just about the same time that the Jack Frost doll stood up to open the door.<p>

"I'll get it!" Ken shouted running from the second floor.

"You smell so nice hee-ho." Minato complemented which earned him a shiver from the younger boy.

Meanwhile, Yukari stuck her head out from the kitchen. "Okay, the dishes are done, Minato, come here, I'm gonna give you a bath." She said which made Ken shiver again. The Jack Frost doll gladly complied as he ran towards the kitchen just right before Ken opened the door.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting." Ken said respectfully then looked up at the taller man. "You're Fuuka-san's uhmmm…" Ken looked away as he started to blush after remembering the scene a few days ago.

"May I step in?" The tall man in blue uniform asked as he looked around. Ken simply nodded and stepped aside to give the man enough space to enter.

"Ken, who was—Theo!" Fuuka said as she came in from the hallway. "What brings you here?" Fuuka asked shyly. Theodore sighed heavily as he placed the bag he had in his hand on the table and opened it.

"It's safe now, you can come out." He said to the bag while the two looked at him curiously. Koromaru then enters the room wagging his tail, seemingly excited then he started barking at the bag. After a while, the bag started to wiggle by itself. Fuuka and Ken didn't know how to react about this while Koromaru started running around in circles excitedly.

"THEO! YOUR BAG SMELLS BAD!" Minako shouted as she came out of the bag, gasping for air.

"I-I'm sorry Minako-sama. It's the only bag I can find in my room." Theodore apologized.

"M-Minako-chan?" Fuuka gasped in surprise while Ken's jaw dropped. Koromaru on the other hand barked happily and jumped on the Pyro Jack doll.

"What is going on in here?" Yukari asked as she stepped out of the kitchen. "Can't you guys keep it-" She tried to continue but stopped halfway upon seeing the Pyro Jack doll patting the white dog's head. "Don't tell me that's…." she started.

"Minako-san/Minako-chan" Ken and Fuuka said in unison.

"Hey Yukari!" Minako said waving at the taller girl with her gloved hand.

"Scrub, scrub, scrub everywhere, hee-ho!" Minako smiled ear to ear after hearing the familiar voice. She immediately ran to the kitchen followed by Theodore who was equally excited. When they got to the kitchen, they saw the Jack Frost doll taking a bath in the sink.

"Minato-ni!" Minako cried out and the Jack Frost doll turned around to look at the Pyro Jack doll.

"Hee-ho?" He looked at the Pyro Jack doll curiously.

"Minato-ni!" The Pyro Jack doll repeated.

"Minako!" Minato said and jumped from the sink to the Pyro Jack doll. The Jack brothers, or twins, in this case, started to perform some kind of dance raising their hands, waving them, shaking their feet left then right and saying hee-ho alternately. The three human occupants of the dorm looked at the dolls, speechless, while Koromaru gladly joined the two, jumping and barking.

* * *

><p>Junpei sighed as he sat on the chair of their room. Chidori looked at him seriously. "Why do you look annoyed Junpei?" The redhead Lolita girl asked.<p>

"I just can't take it anymore. I'm bored in here. There's not much to do and it's hard to talk to people!" Junpei said in a frustrated tone.

"Well we haven't been to the museums yet and the bazaars." Chidori pointed out. Junpei sighed once again, leaning on his chair more.

"I want to visit my best friends." He said flatly.

"Oh. Okay. Let's go back to Port Island." Chidori said but her boyfriend shook his head.

"Mitsuru-senpai wouldn't let us." He said seriously while looking at the redhead.

"Who is she to say if we can or can't go back home?" Chidori asked, clearly annoyed.

"It's not like that. I mean, she won't let us go back just yet but for the right reasons." The black haired boy said.

"What do you mean?" Chidori asked.

"Well, she wants to keep us safe. Remember the insane dude who came to your hospital room almost 2 months ago? She wants to keep us away from him." Junpei explained while the girl frowned.

"Hey, look at me." Junpei said as he approached his girlfriend, putting his calloused hands on the girl's cheek. Chidori placed her hand over Junpei's and looked back at him.

"I admit that I am complaining but I won't insist that we go back to Port Island. Your safety is important to me more than anything else in the world." He paused for a while. "If we have to stay here for the rest of our lives, I'll be okay with it as long as I'm sure that you're safe." He said looking straight into the younger girl's eyes sincerely. The Lolita stared at him.

"I know I will be safe as long as I'm with Junpei." She said as she placed her lips over his which earned a blush from the boy with the goatee.

"W-well…" Junpei started as their lips parted, red as a tomato.

"Well what?" Chidori asked looking at the boy.

"Which museum do you want to visit today?" he asked, still blushing and the girl smiled at him.

* * *

><p>"Theodore, are we really sure these two are the twins?" Yukari whispered to the taller man as they continued to watch the two dolls performing some kind of ritual.<p>

"Well they sound the same as the real ones." Theodore whispered back.

"Yeah, their voices are the same but their actions... Well, I mean Minako-san is pretty much the same but the other one. It really doesn't seem like Minato-san." Ken whispered also staring at the twins.

"I'm positive it is them. I think their personalities are just affected in some way by the Jack Brothers." Theodore whispered bending over a little to hear the smaller boy more clearly.

"What do you mean? They're inside dolls." Ken whispered back.

"I honestly have no idea. All I know is that their personalities are affected by the Jack Brothers." Theodore replied.

"Well I don't see any difference in Minako-chan. She's still the energetic, cheerful girl we know and love." Fuuka whispered.

"Well, Pyro Jack is full of energy but his patience is terrible so Minako-sama's patience is now as long as a nail compared to before." Theodore said, going closer to the girl. "And you haven't seen her throw a fit yet." He continued. Hearing this, the three felt somewhat uneasy. After a while, the hee-hos and dancing finally died down.

"Minato, you're not done taking a bath yet." Yukari said as she picked up the doll and placed him back on the sink while Theodore picked up the Pyro Jack doll and placed her on the table where the others sat down.

"So, can anybody tell us what exactly is going on here?" Yukari asked as she watched the Jack Frost doll scrubbing itself on the sink.

"Well, it's quite a complicated story." Theodore said.

"I don't think any of us have plans for the day so we're all ears." Ken answered looking at the girls who nodded. Theodore scrunched his eyebrows, not really sure how to start.

"We're here for a mission." Minako finally said after a while.

"Mission?" Fuuka asked and the Pyro Jack doll nodded.

"We're here to gather something very important." She continued.

"Important? What could possibly be that important that you both came back here? Not to mention, in those dolls." Yukari asked. Minako looked at Minato then Minato looked at Theodore.

"It can bring Minako-sama and Minato-sama back. If we succeed in the mission, they'll be able to coexist with you once more." The man explained while three pairs of eyes widened at this.

"What can we do to help?" Fuuka asked, eager to have her friends back.

"Unfortunately, I'm uncertain about that." Theodore said, frowning.

"There's no specific order for the mission. I mean, anybody can go first or last." Minako said. "In my case, Ken went first." She continued.

"Huh?" Ken looked at her confused.

"Remember the big shadow? The one Ryoji said is a mirror of your pain and anger?" Minako asked and Ken gasped.

"So it was real!" He said and the Pyro Jack doll nodded.

"I'm still confused." Yukari said.

"Like Theo said, it's hard to explain." Minako said while the three sighed and the room fell silent with only the running water hitting the Jack Frost doll can be heard.

"Is Junpei okay?" Minako suddenly asked and the others looked at her.

"He's not here." Ken managed to say in a sad tone.

"Did something bad happen to him?" Minako asked, very worried.

"I-it's not like that!" Yukari quickly said. "Why are you suddenly asking about him?" she asked.

"Well…" Minako frowned and considering she had a pumpkin for a head, it was a scary expression. "I saw Takaya…" She said weakly, nobody really heard her.

"What?" Yukari asked staring at the doll.

"I saw Takaya." She managed to say, audible enough for everybody in the room to hear.

Minato, who was happily scrubbing earlier, stopped at the mention of the name. The occupants, including Koromaru, of the dorm were quiet while Theodore just looked at everyone, confused. He clearly didn't know how Takaya was involved with the teens.

"He's the reason why Junpei isn't here." Fuuka finally managed to say after silence that seemed to last for years.

"What did he do to Junpei?" Minato managed to ask, in his cold, serious voice. For reasons unknown, Minato's real personality came out after hearing Takaya's name.

"He hasn't done anything to him or to Chidori-san and hopefully he wouldn't be able to do anything to them at all." Ken spoke up this time. Minako sighed in relief after this.

"Where are they then?" Minato asked, still in his cold, serious voice.

"India. Mitsuru-san sent them there to keep them away from Takaya." Ken immediately answered.

"Is anybody doing anything about it?" Minako asked to which the three nodded.

"The police are looking for him. There were times when they almost caught him but he got away." Yukari explained.

"I see." Minako frowned.

"Good luck Minako." Minato said, his cheery, Jack Frost tone returning, as Minako pinched her pumpkin cheeks.

"Why?" Yukari asked, confused.

"He's part of my mission." Minako flatly said.

"Maybe we can convince Mitsuru-senpai to let them go back for now." Yukari said but the Pyro Jack doll shook its head.

"I don't want to risk Junpei or Chidori's lives. I'm sure I'll find a way to get what I need from him." Minako said with a grin.

* * *

><p>"Tch." Shinjiro's phone had been ringing and beeping the entire morning. He was so close to throwing his phone away. He wanted to but something kept holding him back. It was his persona.<p>

"It's the boy. Answer the phone." Castor said.

"Tch. Shaddup." The man in red pea coat told his persona softly as he walked on the streets. He decided that today, he'd look for a job, one that wasn't too bothersome and definitely a job that he could handle. After a while, the phone finally stopped ringing but this silence didn't take long. The phone started ringing again. This time, his childhood friend's calling him. Shinjiro sighed as he answered the phone, in a pissed off manner.

"Shinji?" The boxer asked.

"What the hell do you need Aki?" The man in red pea coat asked.

"I need you to go back to the dorm today. There's something we need to talk about." Akihiko replied.

"Let's talk about it now." The older boy said flatly.

"It's hard to explain if you're not in front of me." The gray haired boy told the brunette.

"Tough luck then." The brunette said and immediately hung up.

"You really are stubborn." Said Castor and Shinjiro just ignored him. "Going back there won't be so bad." The persona said again.

"I told you, I ain't comin' back there." The boy replied in his usual tone.

"You'd be able to continue your studies, look after the boy and relive all the memories you have with the girl." Castor said once more. "Especially that long time you spent with her in your dorm room." The persona continued while Shinjiro started to blush. "Yeah, that was one of the greatest nights. Definitely. It's a shame that it means your betraying your best friend." Castor said, mocking the blushing boy.

"Shaddup. You know that ain't true. She wasn't Aki's girl back then." The brunette said as he tried to calm himself down. "'sides. You know nothin' happened that night. We just talked and slept on the bed." He continued defensively.

"Acting all defensive aren't we?" Castor said and Shinjiro knew the persona was grinning and Shinjiro just ignored him. As Shinjiro kept walking and trying to ignore his mocking persona, his phone rang again.

"Damn! Can't these guys leave me alone?" Shinjiro said more annoyed than ever as he looked at the phone to see who was calling. It was an unknown number so Shinjiro hesitated for a moment but answered it anyway.

"Who the hell is this?" He asked then his eyes widened as he heard the familiar voice.

"Shinjiro-senpai!" the familiar female voice said. "

W-who the hell is this?" Shinjiro stuttered still wide-eyed.

"It's me, Minako!" The girl said cheerfully.

"What the hell?" Shinjiro said freaking out.

"Yeah, it is me!" Minako insisted on the other end. Shinjiro tried to calm himself down and after a while, spoke up.

"Listen, whoever the hell you are. Don't you dare use the brat's name to prank call me ever again or I'm gonna hunt 'ya down and cut 'ya up to pieces. Got it?" He said and before Minako could say anything more Shinjiro hung up and threw his phone in the garbage out of annoyance then continued to walk around the small town.

"What if that was really her?" Castor suddenly asked.

"'Ya know she's dead and she ain't comin' back. Her body's probably rotting now." The brunette said, really annoyed.

"Anything is possible." Castor said simply and Shinjiro was about to answer when he saw the inn in front of him. After a while, he entered the inn.

* * *

><p>Minako pouted as she returned Theodore's phone back to him. "He didn't believe it was me. He even threatened me." She said.<p>

"Of course he won't believe you. If we didn't see you guys and Theodore didn't explain how this happened, we might do just the same." Yukari explained and Fuuka and Ken agreed with her.

"I guess so. But I really need him for my mission." Minako pouted while Theodore comforted her.

"Don't worry Minako-sama, I'm sure we'll find a way to get to him." The man said.

"Yeah, cheer up." Ken said with a bright smile. After a while the smile on the Pyro Jack doll returned and it looked at the Jack Frost doll sitting quietly next to Yukari. They both stared at each other for a while.

"We're hungry." They said in unison.

"Will you please feed me?" Minato asked Yukari so cutely, Yukari had to fight the urge to pinch his cheeks.

"Okay. What do you want to eat?" Yukari asked as she grabbed the doll and carried him to the kitchen with her.

"Anything you make and some ice please." The Jack Frost doll said sweetly.

"Huuunnnnggrrryyy!" The Pyro Jack doll repeated impatiently.

"What do you want to eat, Minako-san?" Ken asked.

"HUNGRY!" She shouted again and started rolling around the floor repeating the word loudly.

"Okay. Okay, we'll get you something to eat if you could just tell us what you want." Fuuka said, trying to calm the Pyro Jack doll down.

"HHHHUUUUNNNGGGRRRYYY" Minako said, her body flaring up which made Ken and Fuuka jump back. "FEED ME I'M HUNGRY" She repeated loudly, her body flaming even harder. All the while, Theodore held a small bag he brought with him earlier and opened it.

"Here you go Minako-sama. We'll get you more in a while, for now this has to do." He said calmly as he offered the bag of charcoal to the girl. Minako cooled down and grinned widely as she took a charcoal from the bag and started eating it.

"Please have more patience with Minako-sama. As you can see, her patience is terrible at the moment but I am certain it will be better." Theodore told Ken and Fuuka who both nodded.

"Now, do you have any peppers?" Theodore asked and Fuuka immediately answered.

"Yeah, but not much. Why?"

"Well, aside from charcoal, the only thing she eats is spicy food." Theodore explained.

"Well we do have some peppers. I'll prepare something spicy for her then." Fuuka said.

"Please make it a quick meal though." Theodore said as he watched the Pyro Jack doll munching on the bag of charcoal. "She might throw a fit again if we make her wait." He continued and Fuuka nodded as she went to the kitchen.

"Uhm, Theodore-san?" Ken called out softly as they both watched Minako eat hungrily. "How did you know she only eats charcoal and spicy stuff?" Ken asked.

"Well…" Theodore started awkwardly. "Last night, when I returned with food, I caught her by my fireplace, eating the charcoal. I didn't know what she wanted to eat so I got her all kinds. She ignored all the food except for the spicy ones." He continued.

"Oh…" Ken said. After a while, Minako finished the entire bag of charcoal and pulled on Theodore's uniform, rendering it dirty. Theodore looked at the Pyro Jack doll whose face and hands were covered in black. Theodore smiled a little as he pulled his handkerchief out of his pocket and took the doll and started wiping her face and hands.

"I wanna try to call Shinji-senpai again." Minako said.

"Here you go." Theodore said as he gave his phone to Minako who shook her head.

"Maybe I can try using Ken's phone." She said looking at the younger boy.

"We've been trying to call him using my phone since this morning but he still won't answer." Ken explained.

"Well maybe we can try again. Please." Minako asked nicely.

"But—" Ken said.

"GIVE ME YOUR PHONE!" Minako said as she flared up again scaring the boy. Ken immediately took his phone out and gave it to the Pyro Jack doll. Minako's flames died down as soon as she got the phone and gave Ken a big smile that would have been beautiful and non-scary to Ken had she not been a Pyro Jack doll. Ken and Theodore looked at Minako as they waited anxiously.

"Shinji!" Minako shouted cheerfully and the two boys lit up.

"Hello. How are you?" The boy on the other end simply said.

"I'm doing okay. How are y-?" Minako suddenly stopped halfway. "Are you really Shinji-senpai?" Minako asked.

"Uh-huh." Shinji said.

"Why do you sound different?" Minako asked again.

"I don't think there's anything wrong with me." Shinji answered. "Who is this?" He suddenly asked.

"It's Minako!" Minako said loudly.

"Oh. Hello." Shinji said.

"Where are you?" Minako asked.

"Near the inn." Shinji said.

"Hmmm…" Minako thought for a while then looked at both Theodore and Ken and covered the phone for a while. "Do you know where the inn is here in Port Island?" Minako asked but both boys shook their head.

"I'll go ask Yukari-san and Fuuka-san." Ken said and went to the kitchen after a few minutes, he came back. "They don't know either." The boy said.

"What inn are you talking about?" Minako asked Shinji.

"There's only one inn here Minako-chan so you shouldn't have any trouble looking for it." The boy said.

"But—" Minako started but was cut off. She looked at the phone and the call was already finished. She tried to call again.

"I think he ran out of battery." She finally said and the two boys just sighed.

"At least we now have an idea where he could possibly be." Ken said just as Fuuka entered the lounge with a plate of hot food.

"Here you go Minako-chan. I hope you like it." She said as she handed the plate to the Pyro Jack doll and Minako gave her a smile.

"Did he say anything else Minako-san?" Ken asked while Minako shook her head as she ate her food.

"But he sounded weird though. He sounds different." Minako said.

"Who are you talking about?" Fuuka asked as she sat next to Ken.

"Aragaki-san." Ken said. "Are you sure it was him?" he asked.

"Well he said he was Shinji-senpai." Minako said as she continued to eat. After a while, Yukari and Minato came back from the kitchen and sat down on the couch with the others.

"So what are we gonna do now?" Yukari asked.

* * *

><p>Akihiko sighed as he stared at his phone when he heard his Persona speak from deep within his thoughts.<p>

"What's wrong?" The Persona asked.

"How are we supposed to get Shinji's help if he won't come at all and he won't tell us where he is either?" Akihiko asked weakly.

"It's Shinji we're talking about." Caesar answered.

"Good point." Akihiko said weakly.

"I'm sure it will work out somehow. For now, perhaps you should open your bag. The rabbit doll may have already ran out of oxygen and died after being in there for hours." Caesar said.

"Ryoji? Dead? _He is _death." Akihiko said softly as he made sure nobody heard him.

"Good point but we can't be too sure." His persona said.

"True." Akihiko said shortly as he took his bag and slowly opened it. After a while, the rabbit doll's head popped out of the bag and started slapping Akihiko's hand with its ears.

"Hey. I told you not to do that." Akihiko told the rabbit doll weakly and the doll was vigorously waving its hands and ears in the air. Akihiko didn't need Ryoji to write down what he was trying to say.

"Okay. Okay. I'm sorry. I didn't think you needed to breathe. I mean, you're death." Akihiko pointed out a bit too loudly and the man sitting next to him looked at him weirdly.

"Uh… S-sorry. I'm practicing a line for a play." Akihiko said as he turned his back on the man and faced the window.

"Practicing a line for a play? I didn't know you're an actor now." Caesar teased.

"H-hey!" Akihiko protested weakly as he turned a bit red as he heard Caesar chuckle and noticed Ryoji soundlessly chuckling from the bag. "Stop it." Akihiko said his blush increasing. After a while, Akihiko looked at the doll again.

"Listen, I'm sorry about earlier. I mean, I really didn't think you needed to breathe." Akihiko said seriously and Ryoji nodded.

"Now, if we could just act normal and not fight until we get to Tatsumi in about 2 hours we won't be having any problems. So stop hitting me. Got it?" Akihiko told Ryoji weakly and Ryoji simply nodded.

"Good. And I won't close my bag so you can breathe but stay inside." Akihiko said and Ryoji raised his paws wanting to give a thumbs up to the boxer and went back inside the bag. Akihiko sighed in relief as he leaned back on his seat but immediately felt uncomfortable as he felt the man sitting next to him staring at him weirdly.

* * *

><p>"Dammit! Where the hell is it?" Shinjiro wondered as he looked through the garbage.<p>

"Somebody probably has it already." Castor said.

"Who the hell would want an old phone? It's just here. I'm sure of it." Shinjiro told his Persona as he continued to rummage through the garbage.

"It's your fault for throwing it away earlier." Castor said, blaming the brunette.

"You're not helping so just shut up." Shinjiro said in his usual, annoyed tone. "Who the heck would want that piece of shit?" he shouted and scared the people walking by but he just ignored them like he usually did as he continued to look for his phone. He was so busy that he didn't notice a short black haired girl approaching him.

"I'm sorry if I'm disturbing you with whatever business you have here but if you could just keep it down. You're scaring some of our visitors." She said. Shinjiro stopped for a while and turned to face the girl. He stood straight as he observed the smaller girl.

"Quit disturbing me brat." Shinjiro told the girl off.

"Okay. Listen, I don't really care whatever problem you have with the pile of garbage right there but you're disturbing and scaring our customers so keep it down." The black haired girl snapped back.

"Tch." Shinjiro just ignored him as he turned around and continued to search through the garbage.

"Thank you." The black haired girl said as she turned around and returned to the inn across the street.

"Brat" Shinjiro said under his breath.

"Suddenly missing your own brat?" Castor mockingly asked.

"She ain't my headache." Shinjiro brushed off his persona.

"You wish she were." Castor said.

"Shaddup." Shinjiro simply said and tried to drown out his Persona's voice in his head.

"Argh…" Shinjiro felt a migraine settle in so he pulled out a bottle from his coat pocket and took a pill.

"Aki and the brat won't be happy to know you're taking that pill again." Castor suddenly said, fighting the effects of the pill.

"If you learn to stop when I tell you to, we won't have to settle to this." Shinji said as he felt the pill taking effect and Castor drifting away from the very back of his mind.

* * *

><p>Mitsuru stared at the ceiling as she was quietly lying down on her bed, it was only 6 am but she had been awake since 4 am. She couldn't get her mind at ease since she couldn't contact the dorm and Akihiko's opinion regarding the business deal she was supposed to be working on didn't help at all either. She was starting to think that her Persona and Akihiko may right. Maybe this was some sort of setup but at the same time, she felt like she was overanalyzing things. Then she suddenly remembered the Arisato twins. They were equally good leaders, so she was wondering how they handled and analyzed situations that were similar to this. The twins always seemed calm no matter what the situation was when it comes to their S.E.E.S. activities and they always knew what they were supposed to do when it comes down to it.<p>

Somehow, along the lines of thinking about the business deal, it lead to thoughts as to why Max didn't contact her the previous day which lead to her calling her kohai in India that then on went to her trying to contact her kohais in Tatsumi. Then, this lead to her calling Akihiko then back to thinking about Max and the business deal then to Akihiko and Artemesia's opinion about the business deal and Max which has ended up in memories of the Arisato twins that has ultimately lead to her memories of the kohai she fell in love with.

To put it simple, she was now thinking of the older Arisato.

"Minato…" She said under her breath. She knew it was very wrong as he already had a girlfriend and much more, it was Yukari, a close friend of the Kirijo head. She remembered all the times she spent with Minato whether in Tartarus or in school or other various places. Soon, these memories ended up in the longest time they've spent together. Her wide smile slowly grew smaller…

* * *

><p>"<em>Minato… I want to be with you a little bit longer tonight… C-can you please stay with me?" the redhead asked the day she invited Minato into her room. She was nervous and she hoped that Minato would say yes. <em>

"_Okay." Minato said as he sat comfortably on the luxurious couch. Honestly speaking, it wasn't everyday that Minato gets to sit in couches like this and he wanted to take advantage of it. _

"_Uhm. W-would you like something to drink or eat?" Mitsuru asked uncomfortably. _

"_Don't worry about me Mitsuru. I'm fine. So is there anything you want to talk about?" Minato asked. Although Minato was comfortable around girls unlike Akihiko was he was just as dense as the older guy. He couldn't tell if a girl liked him even if they slapped the hints on his face. Unless, like Akihiko again, the girl said her feelings flat out. _

"_A-anything I guess." Mitsuru answered uncomfortably. _

_Minato didn't really understand why the redhead seemed very uncomfortable. He cared about her and he knew she cares about him but in a sisterly-brotherly manner, in Minato's understanding of course. The room fell silent for a while as the two teenagers sat quietly. _

"_So…" Minato started. He wasn't really one to start conversations with others but he chose that over falling asleep in Mitsuru's room because of the very comfortable atmosphere. Plus she might execute him if he did. _

"_What are your plans now?" Minato asked. _

"_Plans about what?" Mitsuru asked, a bit more comfortably as she moved a little closer to the younger boy. _

"_You said you're not going to college. So what are you planning to do then?" Minato asked. _

"_I would continue running the Kirijo Group, of course. Perhaps expand in other countries." She said confidently. _

"_How about your engagement?" Minato asked again. _

"_I'm calling it off. I can handle and expand the Kirijo Group on my own." Mitsuru answered, more confident than ever. _

"_So no plans of marriage and children?" Minato asked casually not noticing the redhead blush. _

"_O-of course I'd like to get married and have my own family someday, when I'm a bit older of course." Mitsuru replied still blushing. _

"_Well just make sure I don't get married before you do." Minato said jokingly, even though it was in a serious tone. _

"_W-why? Are you in love with someone?" Mitsuru asked nervously, partially regretting the question. _

"_Well there is someone very special to me. I mean someone besides my sister of course." Minato said looking across the room and Mitsuru felt a glint of hope. At this time, of course, nobody knew who he was talking about with the exception of his sister who was happy for him and his best friend whom he threatened to "accidentally" lose in Tartarus for at least a week if he told anyone. _

"_What is she like?" Mitsuru asked again, her blush getting harder. Minato started to talk about the mystery girl and Mitsuru noticed something that she didn't normally see in the younger boy's face. His eyes were sparkling as he spoke of the mystery girl and his smile at that moment was different from what he normally gave them. Mitsuru was positive that the Arisato boy was indeed, in love with someone. The two talked more about Minato's mystery girl, his plans and Mitsuru's plans for the future._

* * *

><p>Mitsuru closed her eyes tight as she held her tears back while she continued to lie down on her bed. She suddenly recalled the evening a month after that night when Yukari came to her room, bringing Mitsuru news.<p>

* * *

><p>"<em>Mitsuru-senpai, I have great news!" Yukari said cheerfully as she sat on Mitsuru's bed while the older girl brushed her hair. Mitsuru then looked at the younger girl waiting for the news. <em>

"_Minato confessed his feelings for me. He said he loves me." Yukari said excitedly. Of course, being a friend, Mitsuru congratulated her but at the same time the happiness Mitsuru showed was masking the terrible heartache she felt. _

"_I'm so happy for you both." She said as she tried to keep her composure. _

"_Well I have to go tell Fuuka and Minako!" The brown haired girl said excitedly. "Do you want to go with me?" Yukari asked but Mitsuru shook her head. _

"_I have other plans for tonight." The redhead immediately said. _

"_Okay. I guess we can go out some other time." Yukari said as she left the room. _

_Mitsuru looked at the door and slumped on the floor. She felt broken and held her tears back. She wished Yukari didn't tell her but she couldn't blame the girl. Mitsuru did her best to hide her feelings from other people. Her tears started to fall as she pulled her phone out of her pocket and scrolled through the phonebook. _

"_Minato…" She said then shook her head. Then she looked at Yukari's number then Minako's number. Then Aigis and Fuuka's number but again, shook her head. She looked at one last number and finally dialed it. _

"_Akihiko?" Mitsuru started in a weak, trembling voice. _

"_M-mitsuru? A-are you crying?" Akihiko asked, clearly worried. _

"_Where are you?" She asked. _

"_I'm in my room. What's wrong?" Akihiko asked now that he was sure she was crying. _

"_I… I…" Mitsuru started as she finally broke down. _

"_Mitsuru? Mitsuru?" Akihiko called out worried as he heard the redhead crying. After a while, Mitsuru heard a knock on her door. _

"_It's Akihiko. Open the door." Akihiko said. Mitsuru opened the door, her eyes red as she was starting to calm down. Akihiko entered the room and closed the door behind him. _

"_What's wrong?" Akihiko asked, worried. _

"_Minato and Yukari… They're… They're…" Mitsuru said and suddenly threw her arms around the taller boy as she started to cry harder than before. Akihiko flinched at the sudden contact but immediately returned the hug. _

"_It's okay. Everything's gonna be okay." The boxer told his friend as he soothed her._

* * *

><p>Mitsuru couldn't stop the tears from flowing as she recalled these events. She was happy for the two but it still killed her inside and even more now that Minato was gone both for Yukari and herself. She was silently crying when she heard her phone ringing. Mitsuru sat up and looked at the ID. It was Akihiko. She tried her best to regain her composure as she wiped her tears.<p>

"Yes Akihiko?" She said in the best normal voice she could muster.

"Are you sick Mitsuru?" Akihiko asked as Mitsuru's voice sounded different.

"No." Mitsuru said flatly.

"Are you sure?" Akihiko asked again, worried.

"Yes. Positive. So what's the matter Akihiko?" Mitsuru asked as she finally felt herself calming down.

"Well…" Akihiko started. Mitsuru noticed that he was hesitant to speak.

"What is it Akihiko?" The redhead asked.

"Is there any way you can track Shinji's location? I mean, he won't tell me where he is." Akihiko asked and Mitsuru raised an eyebrow as she folded her arms.

"Well, unless there's a chip implanted on his brain, I doubt there is any way I can locate him. I could hire a professional investigator for you though." Mitsuru said.

"T-that's not necessary." Akihiko said uncomfortably. "I mean I thought of that too but I just really thought you might have another way of locating him." He continued.

"Is there any special reason why you suddenly want to look for him?" Mitsuru asked.

"N-not really. I just thought I'd visit him and check how he's doing." Akihiko bluffed and he heard Mitsuru sigh.

"I'll see what I can do." Mitsuru said.

"Thanks." he said.

"Is there anything else Akihiko?" Mitsuru asked.

"No. Thanks again Mitsuru." Akihiko answered.

"Akihiko?" Mitsuru started as she bit her lower lip.

"Yeah?" The boxer asked.

"Nothing." Mitsuru said and quickly hung up.

* * *

><p>"What's bothering you?" Caesar asked Akihiko as the gray haired boy walked around Paulownia Mall.<p>

"I don't know." Akihiko frowned. "It just feels like something is wrong with Mitsuru." He continued.

"I'm sure it's nothing serious." The persona said.

"I hope." Akihiko said.

"So why did we drop by here again?" Caesar asked.

"I promised Minako that I'd bring her a gift when I come back to see her and I plan on keeping that promise." Akihiko explained with a smile as he entered a jewelry shop.

"Welcome sir. How may I help you?" The female attendant asked while Akihiko looked around the shop.

"I'm looking for a gift." Akihiko started.

"Is it for your girlfriend?" The woman asked and Akihiko started blushing.

"I'm looking for a gift for her, something nice but not that expensive." He explained, clearly embarrassed. The female attendant merely smiled as she didn't find this unusual. Akihiko wasn't the first person who came in here looking for something special for his girlfriend. There were many before him ranging from high school, to college, to working.

"Do you have any idea what kind of jewelry she likes?" the attendant asked.

"Well…" Akihiko frowned and the attendant took the hint.

"Perhaps she'd like this one." She suggested pointing to a necklace with a heart pendant. Akihiko looked at it for a while. He thought it looked nice and it was the least expensive among the less expensive jewelries the store had but then, his attention turned to the necklace next to it. He looked at the price and it was a bit more expensive than the one the attendant suggested.

"I'll take this one." Akihiko told the attendant with a smile as he pointed to the second necklace.

"Are you sure? Your girlfriend might like this one more than the silver." The attendant asked and Akihiko looked at her with a smile as he shook his head.

"That necklace is perfect." He said and as if understanding what he meant, the attendant nodded her head and smiled as she took the necklace and placed it inside a small box.

"Would you like me to wrap it for you?" The attendant asked and Akihiko shook his head as he waited patiently.

* * *

><p>"What time did Akihiko-senpai say he'd arrive again?" Yukari asked.<p>

"He said he'd be here by 4 pm." Ken replied as Yukari looked at her watch.

"Well it's quarter to 5. Where is he?" Yukari asked again.

"Relax Yukari-chan. I'm sure he's almost here." Fuuka said.

"Whose turn is it now?" the blue haired girl asked.

"Theodore" The others replied in unison.

"Oh. Sorry. So I just throw the die and wait for it to land and move this round thing. Right?" Theodore asked as he looked at the die Fuuka gave him.

"Yeah. You just throw it then when it lands you move your token." Minako said.

The group decided to play some games while waiting for Akihiko to arrive. They first played scrabble which surprisingly Theodore easily one with a seven-letter complicated word that everybody failed to pronounce. Then they played Jenga and were doing fine until Koromaru knocked over the tower. The third game they played was Twister which ended badly considering Minato and Minako's current stature and Ken falling over them. Now, they were on their fourth game which was Snakes and Ladders. Theodore threw the die and when it landed, he moved his token once.

"Theo, you're supposed to move your token twice. Look at the die, it says two not one." Minako said.

"So I have to move this round thing according to the number the die shows?" Theodore asked.

"Yeah." Minato replied so Theodore moved his token once more and landed on a ladder. Minako moved his token up to the other end of the ladder.

"Hey, why did you touch my round thing?" Theodore asked.

"You landed on a ladder so you go up." Minako explained.

"I see. So if I land on a ladder or a snake I go up." Theodore nodded.

"No, no." Minako shook her head.

"If you land on a ladder, you go up. If you land on snake, you go down." Ken explained this time.

"I see. I understand the mechanics of the game now." Theodore nodded and they proceeded with the game quietly.

After a while, they heard a knock on the door.

"Aki!" Minako shouted cheerfully but Yukari pulled her back by the cape and placed her beside Minato and Theodore.

"We can't be too sure. I'll open the door. You guys pretend to be dolls." She said. Fuuka and Ken pretended to continue playing the game while Koromaru just sat still beside Minato. Yukari inhaled as she prepared to open the door, somewhat nervous.

"What took you so long?" the visitor asked the smaller girl.

* * *

><p>"Senpai!" Yukari said as she sighed in relief and stepped aside to let Akihiko in. Akihiko went in and put his bag by the door as Yukari closed the door.<p>

Akihiko looked around his surroundings. He first noticed Fuuka and Ken playing Snakes and Ladders oddly with six tokens. The next thing that caught Akihiko's attention was Koromaru who was seated in attention not moving at all beside a Jack Frost doll that was placed next to a Pyro Jack doll that was placed next to a man in blue uniform, motionless just like Koromaru. Akihiko shook his head at the weird sight at the lounge.

"So where's Minako?" he asked turning to Yukari.

"She's right over—" Yukari said as she turned to the attention grabbing quartet sitting near Fuuka and Ken.

"When I said to pretend like dolls, I meant Minato and Minako. I didn't mean you and Koro-chan too, Theodore." She said as she slapped her forehead. Akihiko looked at her confused while the Pyro Jack doll couldn't contain herself any longer.

"AKI!" She finally shouted as she ran towards the gray haired boxer. Akihiko gasped as he saw the Pyro Jack doll running towards him. The doll stopped right in front of him and started jumping up and down.

"W-wait. Don't tell me—" Akihiko started then went down on his knees to get a closer look at the Pyro Jack doll.

"M-minako?" he asked and the doll nodded.

"Aki…" Minako smiled. She was ecstatic to be standing in front of Akihiko right now.

"A-are you really Minako?" Akihiko asked awkwardly. Minako pouted and her cheeks puffed resembling buns.

"I-I'm sorry." Akihiko frowned. "It's just that I didn't expect you to look like that." He continued and Minako was about to cry.

"Hey! You're making my sister cry. That's not nice! Hee-ho!" Minato finally spoke up, puffing up his own cheeks.

"M-minato?" He asked and Ken, Yukari and Fuuka all nodded while Minako started to cry. Akihiko looked at her and suddenly grabbed her.

"I'm sorry Minako." He said holding the Pyro Jack doll tightly. "I didn't mean to make you cry. I love you." He said holding the doll tighter.

"Aki…" Minako said and if her face wasn't orange, they would surely see her blush. "A-aki... Tight… Too tight… Your hugging me too tight." She managed to say and Akihiko quickly let go of her almost dropping her.

"S-sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. I just…. I just missed you so much Minako." Akihiko said looking into the Pyro Jack's eyes with a smile albeit still feeling uncomfortable.

"I missed you too Aki." Minako said with a wide smile. The others in the dorm smiled in awe as they watched the two.

"Oh yeah. I have something for you." Akihiko said as he pulled out the small box from earlier from his pocket. "Here." He said and opened the box.

The necklace's chain was pretty much the same in size with the other one earlier except this one was silver in color and had a key pendant with a heart shaped handle. It didn't have an inscription like the other too. Minako gasped as she saw the necklace.

"It's beautiful!" She said as she smiled at the boxing champion. Yukari and Fuuka rushed towards them as soon as they saw Akihiko pull out a small box from his pocket and they shrieked in excitement when they saw the necklace. When they finally settled down, Yukari looked at Akihiko.

"Senpai, please don't get the wrong idea but I'm just wondering. Why a key? Why not a heart or something with the inscription that says I love you?" she asked.

"I don't know." Akihiko said, clearly confused. "I just know it's perfect." He continued with a smile.

"Well maybe a ring would have been better." Fuuka said giggling.

"Fuuka!" Yukari giggled as well.

"Hey!" The three other guys complained while Akihiko started to blush really hard as he stuttered gibberish. Minako just stared at the necklace with a smile on her face.

"Thank you Aki." She said as she looked at the blushing boy before him. Akihiko smiled at her as he finally stopped stuttering and took the necklace from the box and put it around the Pyro Jack doll's neck. After making sure it was clasped properly, Akihiko smiled at Minako again.

"I love you Minako." He whispered, with a blush as he kissed Minako's forehead.

"I love you too Aki." Minako whispered back. Yukari and Fuuka were both shrieking in glee as they watched the two while Minato and Koromaru were oddly enough, cheering on, Ken was blushing and Theodore was simply nodding at his observation.

After a while, things had finally settled down in the dorm everything was back to the way it was before the shrieking.

"You must be Theodore." Akihiko said as he looked at Theodore who was sitting across him.

"Yes, I am. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Theodore said politely.

"Yeah. Nice to meet you too." Akihiko said.

"So, what were you going to tell us senpai?" Yukari asked.

"Oh yeah!" Akihiko gasped and suddenly grabbed his smaller bag from the floor and put it on the table. "Well. It's probably easier to show you than to tell you." He said as he finally opened the bag. The others looked on, anticipating what will come out. After a while, Minako's rabbit doll popped out of the bag.

"Dolly?" Minako's eyes widened and she grinned.

"Minako wait tha—" Akihiko started but before he could finish, Minako had already grabbed and smothered the rabbit doll.

"Dolly!" She said as she kept smothering the doll.

"M-minako." Akihiko called out with a blush as he lightly tapped her head. Minako looked at him. "T-that's Ryoji." He said, still blushing.

"R-ryoji?" Minako looked at him confused then looked at the rabbit doll.

"RYOJI?" Everybody in the dorm exclaimed, sans Akihiko and Koromaru who didn't react and Theodore who simply gasped. The rabbit doll nodded and Minako gave him back to Akihiko. As soon as Ryoji was back in Akihiko's hand, he started slapping the boxer's hand with his ears.

"Hey, I told you to stop doing that." Akihiko said as he placed Ryoji on the table. Then he took out a small whiteboard and marker from his bag. Ryoji grabbed the marker and started writing something down. After a while, everybody read it and found that it was directed to Theodore.

"Theodore, you screwed up. I'm a mute female rabbit doll called Dolly. –Ryoji" It said and Yukari, Ken and Fuuka tried their best to hold in their laughter.

"What?" Theodore gasped. "You're the one who made a mistake." He said defensively. "You were the one who performed the ritual. I merely prepared the containers for Minako-sama and Minato-sama's spirits. I did not even expect you to be joining them." He continued and the rabbit doll wrote something again. Ken read it loudly.

"I did the ritual as the instructions said so don't point your finger at me."

"I'm not pointing my finger at you." Theodore said, taking the metaphor literally.

"Now you two. Maybe somewhere along the way, something got messed up but it's already done now." Fuuka said.

"So Ryoji, tell us about this mission." Yukari said. Ryoji sighed and felt his eyes twitch as he started to write long sentences on the board but before he could finish it he erased everything and put something very simple.

"The twins can come back if they complete the Arcana Sword on or before the deadline which is 2 months from now. Each piece is hidden within a social link." Fuuka read.

"Social link?" She asked confused and Theodore smiled confidently.

"The social links are the bonds, the relationships that the masters have forged with specific people." He explained.

"How are we sure that this would be strong enough to bring them back?" Ken asked this time.

"The bonds they formed with these various people are very strong. This bond is actually the force that gave them the power to seal the Nyx." Fuuka read Ryoji's writing loudly.

"If it's the same force that gave them power to seal the Nyx, wouldn't that mean that they would end up sacrificing themselves again?" Ken asked and everybody was silent for a while. Theodore and the twins didn't know the answer to this so they couldn't explain what would be the difference. Ryoji tapped Minako to get her attention. Minako looked at the rabbit doll which was pointing to the small whiteboard and she started reading what was written.

"It is the same force but there is a great difference. The Great Seal they have created using their social links and their life forces were formed through these relationships and nothing more." After reading it, Ryoji erased the words and started writing as everyone else waited patiently.

"The Arcana Sword is formed not only through the relationships they have established with others but through the relationships these people have established with others as well." It said then Ryoji erased again and continued to write. He mentally cursed as this was very tedious and tiring albeit the only way to communicate with everyone.

"More importantly, the Arcana Sword is also powered by the hopes and dreams of these people and the twins. It's also powered by a part of their hearts and a part of their life forces and strength." Minako continued to read as Ryoji erased and wrote something again.

"In other words, the Arcana Sword is powered not only by the twins but also by the people they have established strong bonds with and others connected to these people who have not given up on their lives and continue to dream and work for a better life." Minako read as Ryoji panted after finishing everything he was trying to tell everyone.

"What?" Yukari asked, her eyebrows scrunched, she was confused. Minato thought for a while then spoke up.

"It's like this, hee-ho. I formed a social link with you. So the bond I have with you powers the sword. Then you have strong bonds with others who have not given up on hoping and working for a better present and future. Your bond with these people powers the sword too." He said while looking at Ryoji who nodded.

"I see. So how are we gonna get the pieces then?" asked Yukari.

"Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be a specific order to the pieces and we can't just choose who would go first." Minako said and this made everyone think.

"Maybe there's some sort of pattern." Fuuka said.

"Well we've only got one shard, hee-ho, and I don't think it's enough to predict a pattern." Minato said.

"Maybe there's a way to predict who's going to be next." Akihiko suggested and they looked at each other.

"Maybe it's possible if we use my cards to predict which Arcana would go next." Theodore said.

"I didn't know you knew how to predict things." Fuuka said, rather impressed with the older boy.

"I-I don't but I'm quite sure I will figure it out in no time if I had enough information about predicting things." Theodore said, blushing.

"Well I can help you find information about it on the Internet." Fuuka said confidently.

"Good idea." Akihiko said.

"Well we'll be in the fourth floor then." Fuuka said as she went upstairs followed by Theodore.

* * *

><p>"Now what are we gonna do while waiting for them?" Yukari asked as they heard the Arisato twins' stomachs grumbling. "That answers the question." She said. "I'll prepare our dinner." She continued while the others nodded.<p>

"Okay. I guess the rest of us can make a list of the people we need for the mission." Akihiko said as he finished returning the board game inside the box and into the cupboard.

"Sure." Yukari said as she went to the kitchen.

Ken opened a drawer and took a piece of paper and a pen then gave it to Akihiko who was now sitting on the couch.

"Thanks." Akihiko said with a smile as the younger boy sat next to him and they leaned closer to the table. Akihiko then wrote Minako and Minato's names in separate columns.

"There so now we need the names." Akihiko said looking at the twins and Ryoji who were all sitting on the table, around the paper.

"We need to put the arcanas too." Ryoji wrote on his whiteboard and the twins nodded.

"Okay." Akihiko said as he listed down Emperor, Chariot, Justice, Death, Priestess and Fortune then looked at the others. "Unfortunately, these are the only ones I recall." He frowned.

"There's Empress and Magician." Ken said and Akihiko wrote it down then Yukari came out from the kitchen.

"We're out of peppers and ice. We're out of charcoal too." She said.

"W-wait, charcoal? What do you need charcoal for? We have a stove." Akihiko said and Yukari and Ken looked at Minako which made Akihiko look at her as she was about to cry.

"It's my favorite treat." Minako said.

"But—" Akihiko started.

"Don't ask senpai, somebody just go buy the ice, pepper and charcoal." Yukari said cutting Akihiko off.

"O-okay. I'll go." Akihiko said still a bit confused. "I wanna go too!" Minako said raising her hand as she stood up on the table.

"Minako, you can't come." Akihiko said.

"I WANNA GO" Minako said flaring up which made Akihiko move back a little.

"Just let her go with you senpai but make sure you take care of her." Yukari said as she returned to the kitchen and Akihiko just sighed.

"Alright, let's go." He said as he grabbed the Pyro Jack doll and headed for the door. "You guys continue making the list." The gray haired boxer said before leaving the dorm.

* * *

><p>Ken looked at the Jack Frost doll and the rabbit doll as he took the pen from the table and waited for one of them to speak. When he felt that neither of them would speak first, he decided to start.<p>

"So what arcanas do you remember?" He asked. "I can't recall anymore other than the one Sanada-san and I mentioned." He continued, looking at the pair. Minato just stared at him while the rabbit doll had his arms cross, clearly thinking. The trio just thought for a while when Ryoji took the pen from Ken and wrote on the paper.

Hierophant, Lovers, Hermit, Strength, Hanged Man, he wrote.

"I see. Are we still missing something?" Ken asked as Ryoji returned the pen to him. Ryoji motioned that he didn't know and Ken sighed and both looked at Minato who was almost asleep.

"Minato-san…" Ken called out while tapping his shoulder lightly.

"Fool Moon Devil! Hee-ho!" Minato shouted as he opened his eyes immediately. Ken stared at him while Minato rubbed his eyes.

"Full moon devil?" Ken asked, his eyebrows scrunching.

"Yeah." Minato replied and Ken wrote it how he understood it. "No, no, no. That's not it, hee-ho. They're all different. Fool. Moon. Devil." Minato said and Ken looked even more confused. Minato decided to take the pen from him and wrote the correct words.

"Oh…" Ken said feeling a bit embarrassed while Minato continued to write Temperance, Tower, Star, Sun and Judgement on the paper.

"Is that all?" Ken asked looking at the 20 arcanas listed on the paper while Minato and Ryoji looked at each other then back at Ken then nodded.

"Okay. So now we need to write down the names of the people for these arcanas." Ken said.

"Both me and my sister's Emperor social link is Hidetoshi Odagiri, hee-ho." Minato said and Ken wrote this down. Ryoji tapped Ken's finger and took the pen from him after he finished writing Hidetoshi's name. Ken watched as Ryoji wrote his name, Ryoji Mochizuki, beside the Fortune Arcana under Minako's column.

"Chariot social link is with Kazushi Miyamoto, hee-ho." Minato said and Ken started to write the name down under Minato's column then proceeded under Minako but was stopped by Minato.

"No, hee-ho. Minako has a different person for Chariot. I don't remember who it is though, hee-ho." Minato explained.

"I see." Ken said.

"I'll just say the ones we have the same person first before proceeding to the ones exclusive to me." Minato said and Ken nodded as he held the pen, ready to write.

"Death – Pharos. Priestess – Fuuka Yamagishi. Empress is Mitsuru Kirijo. Hierophant – Bunkichi and Mitsuko then the Lovers arcana is with Yukari Takeba." Minato paused as he noticed Ken having trouble keeping up. As Minato waited for Ken to finish writing, he started to feel drowsy again and slowly closed his eyes. After Ken finished writing, he sighed as he saw Minato and Ryoji already asleep.

"I guess it takes double the effort to live like we do when you're a doll." Ken said as he placed the pen down then Koromaru barked at him to show his agreement. "We can just continue this later." He said as he patted the dog's head then turned the TV on to watch some news.

* * *

><p>"Ahhh! I'm so tired." Junpei exclaimed as he sat down on the couch beside his girlfriend.<p>

"Me too. We've visited a lot of places today." Chidori said as Junpei moved closer to her.

"Junpei, please stay away from me and take a shower, you smell so sweaty." Chidori said as she moved away from Junpei.

"W-what? Hey!" Junpei protested then smelled himself and sighed.

"Fine." he said as he stood up and headed for the bathroom while Chidori smirked and took out an Indian language book.

* * *

><p>Minato slowly opened his eyes to find himself in the lounge alone.<p>

"Huh?" He wondered where everyone was and sat up from where he was sleeping, the couch. He looked around and the next thing he noticed was the Jack Frost doll lying on the table.

"What the-" Minato said as he looked at his arms. He was in his own body again. He rushed to the restroom to see his reflection. He was human again. This made him smile a bit.

"Finally. No more uncontrollable giggling and verbal tics and _definitely_ no more vomit inducing sweetness." He thought as he stepped out of the restroom.

"Better let everyone know." He said as he went to the kitchen but it was empty. Minato looked at the wall clock, 10 am. He looked outside the window, it was sunny. He went upstairs and knocked on the doors but nobody answered.

"Where the hell are the others?" Minato asked himself. He went into his room, found his phone and opened it. Minato frowned when the phone didn't turn on. He sighed and slumped on his bed. He was slowly drifting off when looked at his old alarm clock, it said 8 am.

"What the hell?" Minato sat up and looked at the clock closer.

"Is this thing still working?" He asked and shook the clock. It moved but instead of forward, the hand moved backward.

"What the hell is going on here?" He asked again as he quickly stepped out of his room and as soon as he did, he looked at the wall clock outside. It now said 2 pm so he looked outside. It was still sunny but it was clearly afternoon.

Minato was getting confused with the clocks he didn't immediately notice another important factor in the current situation. He suddenly remembered Theodore and Fuuka being on the fourth floor to do some research. He hoped, strongly hoped, they were up there.

Minato hurriedly went into the command room but he found it empty. He looked at the wall clock in the room, it now said 9 pm. Minato scrunched his eyebrows and looked outside the window.

It was dark.

Then he suddenly heard a loud screech from a distance.

"That sound!" He exclaimed as he sprinted down and outside the dorm to find the source of the loud, familiar sound. He immediately stopped though when he realized it was broad daylight again as soon as he stepped outside but the streets were empty.

He seemed to be alone and...

Wait.

He looked at his arms then his feet.

"Aren't these-?" He thought when the screeching sound came roaring again from a distance and he started running towards the source.

* * *

><p>I am really, really, really, really, really, really and so on, sorry for taking so long before updating the story I had to take care of a lot of stuff so I didn't have the time to write.<p>

So like my other chapters, this is a lengthy on, yet again. So I apologize for that.

Thanks so much for those who read this chapter and the previous ones. Hope I keep your interest in my fanfiction.

Quick Preview of Chapter 8 - _"It requires great courage to look oneself honestly, and forge one's own path..." _Junpei returns to Tatsumi Port Island and somebody gets hurt badly.

I promise I'll update as soon as I can.

Thanks again so much. Hohoho.

And a very important reminder to everyone, always watch your step. ^^


	8. Chapter 8 Disturbia

Chapter 8: Disturbia

"Wh-wh-what the? W-w-wait, wh-what the heck? H-h-how the heck?" Junpei was freaking out and confused as he made a 360 degree turn, looking at his surroundings.

As soon as he stepped into the bathroom and closed the door, he was here. Junpei turned around to open the door behind him but it wasn't there anymore. Junpei couldn't pick which freaked him out more, the fact that he was in Tatsumi Port Island right now or the fact that it was broad daylight and the streets were empty or both.

"D-d-du~deee…" He said, still freaking out as he started walking towards the dorm calling out for anybody. On his way there, he noticed 3 chests scattered on the street. He decided to open the third chest and as soon as he did, the other 2 disappeared. He looked inside the chest and found a familiar weapon and though he wasn't accustomed to this type, his instincts told him to take it. After taking the weapon, he continued his stroll back to the dorm and stopped in front of a gigantic wall clock and stared at it, bewildered.

* * *

><p>"What's the matter Minako?" Akihiko asked the doll in his arms as they walked in the peaceful neighborhood heading for the convenience store.<p>

"Minato-ni passed by." She replied.

"Huh? But I didn't see anybody passing." Akihiko said.

"He did. My brother passed by here." Minako said firmly.

"You're just hungry." Akihiko said looking at the doll as they neared the convenience store.

"Stay still, we don't want to cause any trouble in there." Akihiko told the doll as they entered the convenience store. Akihiko went to the counter where the store attendant was.

"Do you have charcoal?" Akihiko asked. The store attendant didn't answer.

"Uhm, excuse me. Do you have charcoal?" Akihiko repeated.

"T'si emit…" The store attendant said in a hypnotized tone. Akihiko raised an eyebrow and looked at the Pyro Jack doll in his arms which looked back at him.

"Are you alright?" Akihiko asked.

"T'si emit. Masa-fool irha si." The dazed store attendant said and fainted. Akihiko put Minako on the counter and rushed to the unconscious attendant on the floor.

* * *

><p>"I'm really sorry, Theo." Fuuka said as she helped the older guy pick up the cards that have scattered on the floor.<p>

"No need to apologize, it was an accident." Theodore said as he picked up the last card. As soon as he touched the said card, he felt his chest tightening.

"A-are you alright Theo?" Fuuka asked as she approached the older man who was holding the card in one hand and the other clutching on his chest seemingly grasping for air.

"T-theo!" Fuuka called out as Theo passed out on the floor, the card still on hand. "Theo! Theo!" Fuuka called out, shaking Theodore's unconscious body. Soon she heard footsteps coming.

"Fuuka, what's wrong?" She heard Yukari ask from outside.

"Yukari-chan, it's Theo!" She shouted.

"Open the door Fuuka!" Yukari said from the outside.

"It's not locked!" Fuuka said while holding the unconscious man.

"Fuuka, what's going on in there? Open the door!" Yukari shouted from the outside. Fuuka stood up and opened the door.

"Huh?" Fuuka tried opening the door once more but it still won't open. Fuuka started calling out Yukari's name as she banged on the door.

* * *

><p>"Ken, get the keys from the counter downstairs." Yukari told the younger boy who nodded and ran downstairs to get the keys.<p>

Yukari was busy cooking while Ken and Koromaru watched TV when they heard Fuuka shouting from up the stairs. The three rushed upstairs and knocked on the door but nobody answered. They tried again but still there was no answer from the inside. Yukari and Ken banged on the door loudly but they still didn't hear anything from the inside.

In a few more moments, Ken was back with the keys on his hand. Yukari took the keys from the younger boy and tried opening it. She placed the key on the keyhole and turned the lock. Yukari hears a clicking sound after turning the lock and turned the knob but it was still locked.

"Are you sure this is the right key Ken?" Yukari asked looking at the younger boy who was panting.

"It's the only key behind the counter Yukari-san." He said. As the two tried opening the door, Koromaru started growling at door.

"What's wrong Koro-chan?" Yukari asked as she and Ken looked at Koromaru.

The duo looked at the white dog in horror as Koromaru was scrunching his eyes almost making it bulge out, both his ears folded and his mouth was hanging open and he was drooling bubbling black liquid in place of saliva. Koromaru's front legs were arched forward in a way that it could break while the other two were clawing on the floor and his tail twisted in such a way that it could fall off any moment all the while barking uncontrollably at the door.

"K-koro-chan!" Yukari called out as she grabbed the dog, trying to keep it from arching its legs any further. Ken managed to shake off the fear for a moment as he helped Yukari hold down Koromaru.

* * *

><p>Minato continued to find the source of the loud, screeching sound but it soon died down and disappeared. This didn't ease Minato's mind one bit. It made him more uneasy despite the time shifts becoming lesser. When he was sure that the screeching sound was gone, he stopped.<p>

Minato looked at his surroundings, it was broad daylight but the streets were still empty. Well, it was empty of living things but there were chests all over the place and some kind of device that looked very much like the teleporter in the entrance to Tartarus. He tried accessing the said teleporter but it didn't seem to work at all.

"What the hell is going on here?" Minato wondered when he heard the loud screeching sound again.

He felt a headache come through for a few seconds and when it died down, the loud screeching sound disappeared as well. He looked at his watch, it changed from 2pm to 3am and it was dark again. In a matter of seconds, a monster appeared before him. Minato moved back a little, he was trying to find a way to either get out of there or to fight off the monster.

"Whatever's going on in here, it would've been nice if I got my weapon." Minato said to himself as the monster approached him. He may have the Apollo armor his character donned but he knew it wasn't enough to protect him from the monster's attacks.

Minato cursed in his mind, he was cornered. No matter which direction he'd go, he'd be caught. He was now leaning on a tree as the monster came closer. Minato closed his eyes but he never felt the attack hit him. He only heard a loud cackle then the loud screech.

Minato opened his eyes, it was daylight again and the monster was gone. Minato fell to his knees and started throwing up. This was the first time he felt this afraid. Not even in front of the Reaper or the Nyx did he feel this kind or amount of fear.

* * *

><p>"D-d-dude?" Minato heard a familiar voice and he looked up. Junpei was across the street, naginata in hand.<p>

"I-Is that really you dude?" Junpei asked, rubbing his eyes using his free hand. He clearly couldn't believe what he was seeing right now. One of his best friends was across the street kneeling on the ground, trembling.

"Junpei…" Minato said as he tried to calm himself down.

Junpei shook his head and ran towards Minato. Whether the Minato he was seeing now was real or an illusion, it didn't matter, he was still his best friend. Junpei dropped the naginata as he helped his weakened friend to his feet.

"Are you alright man?" He asked and Minato nodded.

"I thought you were in India?" Minato asked when he finally managed to calm down.

"I thought so too." Junpei said.

"What the heck is going on here?" Minato asked.

"How the hell am I supposed to know if you don't?" Junpei asked as he picked up the naginata. Minato stared at him for a while.

"Good point." He said and the two laughed. Once the two finally managed to stop laughing, Junpei stared at the slightly smaller boy for a while.

"Didn't know you were into cosplay." He said.

"I'm not. I honestly have no idea how I ended up wearing this." Minato answered.

"By the way Junpei, did you notice something weird in here? I mean besides from us being here together." He asked. The black haired boy thought for a while.

"Do you mean the clocks moving in all directions?" Junpei asked.

"Aside from that. I mean, did you see something else?" Minato asked as the two started walking.

"I encountered a few monsters. They looked familiar I just don't know where I've seen them. But they're definitely not shadows dude." Junpei explained.

"Lucky you're still alive." Minato commented and Junpei smirked.

"Those monsters won't defeat Junpei the Great so easily even when I'm not used to my weapon." He said proudly raising the naginata almost cutting off Minato's head had he not evaded it.

"Right. So why don't you give the naginata to someone who actually knows how to use it?" Minato suggested. Junpei stopped walking and stared at Minato confused.

"O-oh…" Junpei said and gave the naginata to Minato who smirked.

"This is like Tartarus man but worst." Junpei commented as they walked while Minato just nodded.

"Did you say something dude?" Junpei asked after a while.

"No, I didn't…" Minato replied then they heard a loud cackle and immediately stopped walking, looking at each other.

* * *

><p>"Aki…" Minako called out to her boyfriend who placed a wet towel on the unconscious attendant's forehead. "Aki…" Minako repeated. Akihiko finally heard her and looked at her.<p>

"What's the matter?" He asked.

"Did you laugh?" Minako asked.

"No." Akihiko said flatly as he looked at the attendant then stood up to take out his phone.

"Did you hear anybody laughing earlier?" Minako asked again.

"I don't think so. Minako, we're the only ones here aside from the attendant." Akihiko pointed out as he was about to dial the police station's number.

"Huh? I must be out of battery." Akihiko said as he looked at his phone which was off. "There must be a phone here somewhere." Akihiko said as he started looking around the counter.

"There it is again!" Minako exclaimed and Akihiko looked at her.

"What?" He asked.

"The laugh." Minako said. "Let's get out of here, please." She continued.

"But we can't just leave the attendant." Akihiko pointed out as he went closer to his girlfriend. Even though Minako has taken the form of a Pyro Jack doll, Akihiko knew that the girl was afraid. Minako heard the laugh again and started freaking out even more. "

Aki, please… Let's get out of here." She begged. Akihiko turned to his girlfriend and was shocked at what he saw. The Pyro Jack doll was crying but behind it stood the actual Minako, laughing silently close to the Pyro Jack doll's ear.

"Aki, please, let's get out of here." The Pyro Jack doll begged.

Akihiko was unable to move as he felt fear strangely setting in. The Minako behind the Pyro Jack doll stared at Akihiko and smirked as she saw fear in Akihiko's eyes. Akihiko was shaking but the Pyro Jack doll's frantic begging snapped him out of his trance. He instinctively grabbed the Pyro Jack doll and headed for the door to leave.

* * *

><p>"Did 'ya hear that?" Shinjiro asked.<p>

"Yeah, but I can't tell where it is exactly." Castor replied as Shinjiro walked around the empty streets of the town.

"Better hurry. I have a bad feeling about this." The persona suggested as Shinjiro started walking faster.

"Ya don't have to tell me twice." The brunette said while he walked. The man in red pea coat stopped walking as he heard a loud screeching sound.

"There it is again. Can you tell where it's coming from now?" Shinjiro asked his persona.

"Nope. Quit askin' me. I ain't Juno or Artemisia." Castor said in an annoyed tone.

"Tch." Shinjiro shrugged as he started walking hoping for the loud screech to go off again so he can find the source. As he walked, he heard his phone ring and he opens it.

"What's up Fuuka?" He asked.

"Shin- Theo- rapped- need -" He heard the blue-haired girl in a very unclear tone.

"What? I can't understand you." Shinjiro said but then he heard a click sound then the line went dead. He looked at his phone for a while then it turned off. After a while, it finally hit Shinjiro and Castor.

"Didn't ya throw your phone earlier?" The persona said. Shinjiro looked at the "phone" on his hand and found himself holding a rotten banana filled with worms and black liquid.

"What the hell?" the brunette exclaimed as he immediately threw the nasty thing away and wiped his hand on his coat. "What the heck is going on in here?" Shinjiro asked looking around.

* * *

><p>Mitsuru was sitting calmly on a chair in her hotel room as she read a book when she heard Fuuka's voice, calling out a name, Theo. She shrugged it off as her imagination playing tricks on her and proceeded with her reading. Not long after, she hears Yukari and Ken screaming and banging on her door. She opened the door but there was nobody around. She shook it off as her imagination playing tricks on her again and continued with her reading when she heard another sound. It was an annoyingly painful scratching sound and howling from a dog which sounded like Koromaru. She opened the door again and still found no one. The redhead bit her lower lip lightly, trying to make sense of what she keeps hearing.<p>

"Artemisia, please try to scan our surroundings for anything strange." Mitsuru ordered her persona but did she did not hear Artemisia answer.

"Artemisia?" She called out but still, no answer.

"Artemisia, if you can hear me, answer me, please." Mitsuru requested but again, there was no response from her persona.

Mitsuru sat back down on the couch calmly as she concentrated and tried to call on to her persona again. To her surprise, she found nothing. The persona wasn't in her subconscious. It's as if she never existed in the first place. Upon the realization that the persona was no longer within her, she kept calling out Artemisia's name seemingly in a trance.

"Artemisia, Artemisia, Artemisia, Artemisia." She repeated the name again and again as she stared blankly on the wall, swaying back and forth.

* * *

><p>"Hey I think there's someone over there!" Junpei exclaimed pointing to the street across them.<p>

Minato turned to look at the direction Junpei pointed to. There was a figure cowering but he can't tell whether it was human or another part of this creepy world. The boys looked at each other and nodded, quickly running towards the figure. Junpei and Minato stopped right before the figure, it was a human, and it was -

"M-ms. Toriumi?" Junpei called out. The woman slowly lifted her head to look at the person who called him. It was indeed Isako Toriumi, their homeroom teacher. She looked at them but she didn't respond. She was frightened, the two were certain.

"Are you okay?" Minato asked but the woman still did not respond then they heard the loud screeching sound.

"We gotta run Ms. Toriumi!" Junpei exclaimed as he helped the teacher up but as soon as he touched her she started freaking out.

"Let go of me! Don't touch me!" Isako screamed hysterically.

"Ms. Toriumi, calm down! It's me, Junpei!" Junpei said as he tried his best to calm the frightened teacher down. When the screeching sound died down, a number of weird creatures appeared before them.

"Wh-what the hell? Why now?" Junpei said in an annoyed tone.

"I'm sorry Ms. Toriumi." Junpei apologized as she grabbed the woman by the waist, carried her and dashed off. Minato followed suit, running as fast as he could.

* * *

><p>Yukari and Ken's sigh of relief was short lived as Koromaru started doing strange things again. Koromaru started howling uncontrollably as he twisted his head and would've killed himself had Ken not noticed what he was trying to do. Koromaru also clawed on the floor really hard even though his claws were already bleeding and he was clearly in pain.<p>

"What's happening to you Koro-chan?" Yukari asked the dog, teary-eyed as she held the dog's legs to prevent it from clawing on the floor and hurting himself further.

The duo immediately let go of Koromaru and moved back in fear the moment they saw the dog, drooling but this time it wasn't saliva or the black goo. It was worms, live worms covered in green liquid. As both froze in fear while live worms came out of Koromaru's mouth continuously, Isis and Kala-Nemi finally realized what was happening to the dog.

"Yukari, look." Isis told Yukari calmly. Kala-Nemi did just the same with Ken.

The two didn't immediately hear their personas but when they finally did, they saw exactly what Isis and Kala-Nemi saw. A creature was twisting Koromaru's head as it forcibly made the poor dog claw on the floor and fed it worms which in turn Koromaru refuses to swallow.

"W-what the heck?" Ken exclaimed.

The creature stopped for a while and looked at them. Its shape was similar to that of a shadow. It was multicolored and had 10 arms. Two were holding its eyes, another was holding its mouth and the fourth was holding a bucket full of worms. The fifth arm was holding another bucket which was full of multi-colored liquid. The sixth arm was used to grab worms from the bucket, dip the worms into the multi-colored liquid then forcibly feed it to Koromaru. The seventh and eighth arms were holding the dog's legs and clawing it on the floor vigorously and the last two arms were twisting poor Koromaru's head. The creature cackled after staring at Ken and Yukari for a while then it disappeared.

It was clear now, Koromaru was howling uncontrollably because he was in tremendous pain. Ken and Yukari shook their heads and rushed towards the weakened and whimpering dog. Yukari tried to call out her persona to heal the dog but she was panicking and couldn't concentrate. Ken couldn't call out his persona either so he took his hoodie off instead to wipe the blood off Koromaru's claws and wipe the poor dog's mouth.

"Don't worry Koro-chan. We won't let that thing hurt you anymore." Yukari cried weakly as they hear the cackling return. Yukari and Ken instinctively wrapped both their arms around the dog and held him protectively.

* * *

><p>"I-it won't budge!" Akihiko said starting to panic as he tried opening the door again.<p>

"Uoy no evael…" The transfixed store attendant said. Akihiko turned to see the store attendant with the other Minako standing closely behind him with a smirk on her face.

"Aki!" the Pyro Jack doll shouted, clearly afraid of the sight before them.

"Damn it!" Akihiko said. "Minako, stay behind me." He continued as he placed the Pyro Jack doll on a shelf behind him. Akihiko, though scared, tried his best to concentrate and call out his persona but to no avail, Caesar didn't appear. He tried calling out Caesar again but the persona still did not appear.

"W-what the heck is going on here?" Akihiko asked as the store attendant started running towards him. The boxer quickly grabbed the Pyro Jack doll and covered it with his arms as he ran through the glass door, breaking it and continued sprinting as fast as he could.

"Aki, you're bleeding." Minako said worriedly as she noticed blood drip from the side of the boxer's head.

"It's nothing. I'm fine." Akihiko said as he continued running with the doll in hand. After a while of running, Akihiko looked back and didn't see the store attendant anymore. He panted heavily as he stopped and rested for a while.

"Aki, I think we should've stayed in the store…" the Pyro Jack doll said as it looked at the boxer on his knees panting heavily.

"No, we don't know what that guy can do so it's better that we ran." The gray haired boxer said in between breaths.

"No." The Pyro Jack doll said weakly as it shook its head. "Look." It continued and Akihiko lifted his head and was shocked.

The store attendant was gone but the other Minako was there in front of them, smirking. Along with her were other humans that seemed just as hypnotized as the store attendant. Among them were Kenji, Mitsuru and Kazushi. Akihiko scrambled to his feet and readied himself in a fighting stance while the Pyro Jack doll ran behind his leg to hide.

"Alright, if you want some, come get some." he said nervously.

* * *

><p>Junpei and Minato quickly ran to an alley. Minato leaned on the wall panting heavily while Junpei slumped on the ground as he gently put their hysteric teacher down.<p>

"S-stay away from me! Go away! Leave me alone!" Isako shouted hysterically. When Minato finally caught his breath, he set his weapon on the ground and went towards the teacher. He grabbed her arms gently but firmly and looked at her.

"Isako-san, look at me." Minato said calmly while the teacher tried to break free from Minato's grasp. "Isako-san, it's me. Look at me." Minako repeated still holding the teacher's arms.

"Hey come on Ms. Toriumi, snap out of it." Junpei cried as he looked at their frightened teacher. Minato sighed and let go of Isako's arms.

"Maya, it's me, Tatsuya." He said while Junpei stared at him weirdly. This seemed to have caught the teacher's attention as she stopped screaming and shaking and slowly looked up at Minato.

"T-tatsuya?" She said and Minato nodded. Junpei just stared at them, very confused.

"Don't be scared, everything is going to be alright." Minato said as he looked their teacher in the eyes. Junpei shook his head as Ms. Toriumi did seem a bit calmer than earlier. Isako suddenly threw her arms around Minato who was taken aback at first but hugged her back anyway.

"I-I'm scared Tatsuya." Isako said.

"I know, but everything's going to be okay." Minato said.

"Y-yeah, everything is gonna be okay." The confused Junpei said.

"Junpei?" Isako's eyes widened when she finally snapped back into reality and realized who she was hugging. She quickly let go of Minato and acted annoyed although she was clearly embarrassed.

"W-what's going on here?" She managed to ask.

"We don't know Ms. Toriumi. But I didn't know you were very, very close to Minato." Junpei said smirking.

"S-shut up Junpei or I'll give you homework." Isako said, still flushed.

"W-what? What did I do?" Junpei said uncomfortably and Minato chuckled a bit.

"We need to go before the screeching sound returns." Minato said and his two companions nodded as the three of them started running.

"What are we running from?" Isako asked.

"No idea. We don't have answers to any of your questions." Junpei said.

"Wait." Minato said and the two immediately stopped. "Look." Minato said pointing to the direction of three chests.

The three looked at each other and nodded. Each stood by a chest then looked at each other again. Minato who stood in the middle of the two nodded his head and the three opened the chest in front of them.

"Empty." He said and Junpei quickly followed. "Nothin' here." He said. The two boys then turned to their teacher who was now holding two pistols. Isako turned around to face them, pointing the guns at them.

"W-whoa, watch where you're pointing those things!" Junpei said stepping back, nervous then the female teacher put the pistols down.

"These…" She started but hesitated while the two boys looked at her. "They remind me of a game." She said staring at the pistols.

"Innocent Sin?" Minato asked and Isako looked at him and nodded.

"W-wait a second, so are you guys saying we're inside the game?" Junpei asked, confused. Isako looked at him, fear setting in her face which Minato immediately noticed. Minato quickly grabbed Junpei and the two turned their backs on Isako for a moment.

"Of course we are but don't tell Ms. Toriumi that." Minato whispered. "What's happening here, it's similar to what happens during the Dark Hour and people like Ms. Toriumi shouldn't be involved in this." He continued.

"So you're saying we're gonna lie to her?" Junpei asked.

"For her own good." Minato said and the two boys turned to face their teacher when they heard a familiar voice.

* * *

><p>"There's nothing to be afraid of Ms. Toriumi, this is nothing but a dream." The male voice said.<p>

"R-ryoji?" Junpei exclaimed then freaked out.

"It's been a while Junpei." Ryoji said with a smile. Junpei just stared in confusion. So many things were so wrong and weird right now.

"What's with that look?" Isako asked the boy with the goatee after calming down a little. While the two were busy, Ryoji approached Minato and the two whispered to each other.

"Is this mine?" Minato asked weakly and Ryoji nodded.

"However…" Ryoji started while Minato stared at him, waiting for him to go on. "I can't pinpoint which social link this is." The black haired boy continued.

"That's easy, it's Ms. Toriumi's." Minato said calmly.

"I can sense other people involved here too. Yukari-san, Fuuka-san, Mitsuru-san, Kazushi and Kenji are here too and even Minako-san and the rest of your friends." Ryoji explained.

"But I haven't seen any of them." Minato pointed out.

"They are here. We just don't perceive them just as they do not perceive us." Ryoji explained while Minato didn't answer. He was confused with this but at the same time his gut feeling told him it was their homeroom teacher's social link in the works here.

"How can we know then?" Minato asked.

"What the heck are you guys doing? We gotta hurry! Didn't you hear the screeching sound just now?" Junpei said which caught the attention of Minato and Ryoji before Ryoji could answer the question. The quartet then started running as the screeching sound grew louder. They didn't get that far though as a huge creature appeared before them. The said creature was huge, shaped like a building and its eyes and mouth resembled that of windows. They tried to go back but as soon as they turned, house-like creatures were approaching them and they were surrounded.

"W-what the hell are we gonna do?" Junpei asked the blue haired boy standing beside him.

Minato didn't answer as he was thinking. Ryoji on the other hand, just stood calmly, waiting for Minato's orders and looking at the female teacher beside him worriedly. Contrary to the building-like creature behind them, the eyes of the house-like creatures were not hollow. There was a figure inside each of the eyes something only Junpei noticed. As soon as he did though, he started to shake in fear.

"Junpei! What's wrong with you?" Ryoji asked, rushing to his friend while both Minato and Isako watched Junpei shaking in fear.

"Look at their eyes…." Isako heard a soft male voice whisper in her ears. She looked at Minato but it clearly wasn't him.

"Look them in the eyes." She heard it again and just as the voice whispered, she looked one of the house-like creatures in the eyes and saw a figure. As soon as she did this, the same happened to her. She started screaming and freaking out in fear. Minato rushed to her aid trying to calm her down.

"Ms. Toriumi, calm down." He said. "What's going on here?" The boy asked Ryoji who was also trying to calm down Junpei.

"Look them in the eyes." Minato heard a soft male voice whisper.

"Did you say something Ryoji?" He asked as he was holding the female teacher down. Ryoji shook his head.

"Look them in the eyes, Minato." The soft male voice whispered once again.

"Look them… in the eyes?" Minato asked when the male voice whispered the same thing.

"Yes, yes. Look them in the eyes…" The male voice whispered and this finally made Minato look at one of the house-like creature's eyes and like Junpei and Isako, fear immediately struck him.

Ryoji saw Minato look in the window-like eyes of one of the creatures and finally realized what was going on.

"It's their eyes!" He said as he stood up while the three shook in fear behind him. He transformed to his shadow form and prepared himself for battle to protect his friends.

* * *

><p>"Theo, what's happening to you?" Fuuka said as she moved out of the way while Theodore who seemed hypnotized used one of his cards to attack Fuuka with agi.<p>

"Theo, wake up, please! It's me Fuuka." Fuuka said as Theodore tried to attack her with bufu this time.

"Juno, I need your help, please." Fuuka said in her mind. She had been trying to summon Juno since Theodore's first attack but the persona wasn't responding at all.

"Juno, please." Fuuka begged as Theodore attacked her again. Fuuka looked around the command room trying to find anything to defend herself from Theodore's attacks. She tried to open the door again and this time with success.

Fuuka started running downstairs to call for help but no matter how many times she tried going down, she was still on the same floor. The blue haired girl panted heavily as she started to slow down while Theodore was catching up to her. Theodore attacked her with a stronger fire attack, agilao this time which Fuuka couldn't dodge in time and hit her left arm. Fuuka ran to the bathroom and locked the door behind her. She slumped on the ground as she looked at her left arm which was slightly burnt. She stood up and started washing her arm in the sink when the door flew and hit the wall on the other side of the door.

Fuuka shook in fear when she realized she was trapped as she saw Theodore standing outside. Theodore took out another card from his book and used ziodyne to attack Fuuka. The force of the attack was so strong it shattered all the mirrors in the restroom and threw Fuuka to the wall hard before the girl fell to the ground, badly hurt and unconscious.

After Fuuka fell to the ground, Theodore, still hypnotized, walked back into the command room and sat down on the couch quietly, fixing his cards.

* * *

><p>"Did you hear that Yukari-san?" Ken asked Yukari as he let go of Koromaru momentarily.<p>

"What?" Yukari asked still holding the white dog protectively.

"I heard the glass shattering from there." The boy said pointing to the girl's restroom.

The brown haired girl looked at the boy then at the door. Taking this as a signal, Ken held Koromaru protectively while Yukari let go and nervously stood up, heading for the restroom. Yukari opened the door to the comfort room and was surprised to see all the mirrors completely shattered inside.

"What happened here?" She wondered then her eyes went straight to the unconscious and bleeding body on the floor.

"Fuuka!" Yukari screamed in horror as she rushed towards the injured girl. Ken heard Yukari's scream, let go of Koromaru and dashed towards the women's washroom.

"Yukari-san, what's –" Ken was shocked to find Yukari gently shaking Fuuka's body and immediately moved towards them.

"Fuuka-san!" Ken called out worried. The two healers tried to summon their personas in order to heal Fuuka but neither could concentrate.

"W-what's happening here?" Yukari cried out holding her friend's body tightly. As the two tried to wake the unconscious girl they hear clawing and Koromaru howling.

"Ken!" Yukari looked at Ken still holding Fuuka's body. Ken nodded and ran outside to help Koromaru. As soon as Ken appeared from the restroom, he saw the 10-handed multicolored creature approaching Koromaru.

"Hey! Stay away from him!" Ken shouted but the creature ignored him. Ken bit his lip as he tried to think as fast as he can of a way to get the creature's attention away from Koromaru. Ken took one of his sneakers off and threw it on the creature. This successfully caught the creature's attention as the sneaker got caught in its body. The said creature turned to face Ken while absorbing Ken's sneaker into its body.

"Y-yeah! Come get me!" Ken said as he started running down the stairs, almost slipping on the floor while Koromaru lay badly hurt on the floor, whimpering.

* * *

><p>"Damn it! There's too many of them!" Akihiko said as he panted, dodging one of the dazed humans attacking him.<p>

"Aki…" Minako said weakly as she cowered in fear behind Akihiko.

"I'm sorry." Akihiko said as he hesitantly punched the hypnotized male attacking him, knocking him out.

Akihiko had been apologizing repeatedly for each time he punched someone. He knocked out every person he punched but after a while, they just kept coming back up. The boxer's injury didn't help make the situation easier as he started feeling dizzy. Akihiko was about to punch the next person to attack him but immediately avoided hitting her as soon as he realized who it was and lost his balance. Akihiko landed on his back as he shook his head to shake the dizziness off.

"Aki!" Minako ran towards the boxer and looked at him in worry.

"M-mitsuru." Akihiko said, looking at the person who tried to attack him earlier. It was Mitsuru.

"Mitsuru-senpai! What's wrong with you? Snap out of it!" Minako said waving her arms up and down, her fear completely replaced with worry.

"I'm fine Minako. You should run. I'll hold these guys back." Akihiko said panting as he tried to stand up back fell back down. He was clearly exhausted on top of being injured.

"I can't leave you Aki. Come on, stand up." Minako said trying to help the boy, five times bigger than she currently was. While helping Akihiko up, without much success, Mitsuru grabbed the Pyro Jack doll and threw her to a nearby dumpster which closed immediately because of force after Minako landed inside.

"Minako!" Akihiko shouted as he tried to stand up but failed once again.

Mitsuru grabbed him by the collar and raised her fist to hit Akihiko. Mitsuru was oddly showing strength even stronger than both Shinjiro and Akihiko combined together but Akihiko managed to hold Mitsuru's wrist to prevent her from punching him. The hypnotized Mitsuru dropped Akihiko on the ground as soon as she heard banging sounds from the dumpster and headed to that direction. Akihiko tried to stand up again but failed, just like his earlier attempts and in a matter of seconds, Kenji and Kazushi were now before him. Kazushi went to Akihiko's back and grabbed him by the arm, holding the boxer's hands tightly in place to make sure he won't be able to fight back. Kenji, who was holding a crowbar, lifted his arm holding the said weapon and prepared to attack Akihiko. Akihiko knew he won't be able to fight back so he closed his eyes to brace himself for what was to come.

* * *

><p>Shadow Ryoji floated on top of his three frightened companions using his body as a shield from the creatures' attacks.<p>

"M-minato, snap out of it." Shadow Ryoji said as he felt more attacks hitting him. Although it didn't hurt him as much as it would, had he been in his human form, this was definitely wearing him down and he knew it was only a matter of time before he collapses.

"M-minato-san!" Shadow Ryoji called out to the blue haired boy crouching in fear.

Minato could hear Shadow Ryoji calling him and telling him to snap out of his fear. He knew he had to and he wanted to but no matter how hard he tried, it didn't seem to work. His fear wouldn't go away. He doesn't even know why he was scared in the first place. He just heard a voice telling him to look at those window-like eyes and he did. He saw a figure move and as soon as he did, he started to feel fear.

"Darn! Why the heck can't I calm myself down?" Minato thought as he shook in fear, his eyes wandering to his best friend who was on his knees, shaking just like he was. Then, his eyes continued wandering to their homeroom teacher who was screaming on top of her lungs.

"No! No! No! This isn't real! That's not happening!" Minato heard Isako scream in great terror. This finally made Minato notice something. The fear that he felt was clearly similar to that of Junpei's however there was something different about the fear that Isako Toriumi was showing.

"D-don't take him away from me! No! No! You can't!" The homeroom teacher shouted again. Minato, although still fear-stricken, slowly crawled towards their teacher.

"H-he's mine! I won't let you take him away from me! No! No! No! You can't have him! No! Don't leave me behind! Stay with me! No! No! No!" She kept screaming. After much struggle, Minato finally managed to reach her. Though shaking, Minato gently placed his hands on Isako's cheeks and wiped the tears away from her cheeks.

"Look at me, Isako." Minato said, finally calming down. Isako looked at Minato in the eyes.

"I, I…" Isako tried to speak, her lips trembling.

"I know." Minato said as he continued to wipe the woman's tears away.

"But…" Minato started, looking the teacher in the eyes and hesitated to continue for a while.

"You have to accept it, Isako. I…" Minato continued but hesitated again. "I care about you but you have to understand, you have to accept that I can't return your feelings." Minato finally managed to say.

"N-no. I, I don't want you to be with Takeba. I, I want you for myself Minato. I love you!" Isako said, placing her hands on Minato's face to make him look at her. Junpei heard this and immediately, his fear was replaced with a mixture of shock and anger as he saw Isako forcibly kiss Minato on the lips. Minato, just like Junpei felt a mixture of shock and anger. He immediately pulled away from Isako and let go of her then stood up quietly without looking at the woman. This also shocked Shadow Ryoji despite being busy with trying to protect the three from the creatures surrounding them just as he returned to his human form and collapsed to the ground.

"Junpei, take care of them." Minato said as he picked up the naginata on the ground and Junpei immediately took this as an order looking around their surroundings to find something he could use as a weapon. Minato ran towards the nearest house-like creature and attacked it using the naginata and managed to knock it down. Then, he attacked the said creature once again. Although the creature was dizzy, it still wasn't destroyed.

"Tch." He said quietly as he tried attacking it again. All the while, Isako was shocked and hurt at Minato's reaction. She failed to notice the building-like monster about to attack her. Junpei was quick enough to notice this as he quickly pulled both Isako and Ryoji out of the way. Avoiding the attack though led to it redirecting straight to the person standing right behind Isako and Ryoji earlier, Minato. "Minato, watch out!" Junpei warned his best friend who turned around to see what was going on behind him and the attack hit him causing him to fly all the way to a tree.

"MINATO!" Junpei shouted as he rushed towards his best friend. Isako though shocked quickly rushed to Minato as well, very worried.

"Minato…" She cried out.

"I… I'm sorry… Yu…ka…ri…" Minato said just before he lost his consciousness.

"H-hey! Come on, wake up." Junpei said as he gently shook the unconscious Minato.

"Minato! Minato!" Isako called out, crying and afraid. "Please wake up Minato. I love you" Isako cried out again. Upon hearing this, Junpei's blood started to boil and he lashed out on Isako.

"Love? Love? You love him?" Junpei started in an angry tone. "Forcing someone to love you isn't love. It's selfishness!" Junpei shouted at her angrily. The boy with the goatee gently set Minato's unconscious body on the ground as he picked up the naginata.

"If you really loved someone, you would place his happiness before yours because knowing that he is happy would be enough to make you happy." He continued as he headed towards the unconscious Ryoji who was slowly being approached by the creatures.

Isako wanted to answer back and explain herself but she couldn't bring herself to speak. Junpei was right, she was being selfish. She loved Minato but she wanted him for herself even though she knew that somebody had already claimed the young man's heart.

"Aaaarrrggghhhh! Get lost you monsters!" Junpei shouted as he swung the naginata around barely hitting any of the monsters approaching him and the unconscious Ryoji.

"I… I…" Isako started looking at Minato's unconscious body.

"I'm sorry Minato…" She finally managed to say.

"I understand now. I was being selfish. I, I love you Minato and I want to see you happy." She continued. "And if Yukari would make you happy, then I want you to be with her, Minato." Isako said, smiling as she cupped Minato's cheek. Isako smiles at him as she brushes Minato's bangs away from his face. Isako then stands up and takes the pistols she found earlier and shoots two of the creatures that were trying to attack Junpei and Ryoji. This catches not only Junpei's attention but the creatures' as well as they turned around and approached Isako and Minato.

"Junpei, wake Ryoji up, we need all the help we can get." Isako ordered. The change in their teacher surprised Junpei but he immediately shook it off and did just as he was told. He set the naginata down and started waking Ryoji up all the while hearing gunshots.

* * *

><p>Ken kept running down the stairs but he noticed that no matter how much he went down, he was still on the same floor. He stopped momentarily hoping the rainbow-colored creature was gone and looked back. It was still behind him. The young boy tried running again but slipped because of his exposed sock.<p>

"Koromaru, move out of the way!" Ken said as he slid towards the direction where the weakened dog lay.

Koromaru, with all his strength, pulled himself away just in time albeit slowly. Ken's foot hit the door of the command room causing him to stop. Luckily the impact was not that strong so Ken wasn't hurt. Ken looked up and saw that the rainbow-colored creature was gaining speed, approaching him. Ken immediately sat up and hoped that the door to the command room would open as he turned the knob. The door successfully opened and Ken ran inside bumping into a confused Theodore landing on his back.

"I-I'm sorry!" Theodore said still confused as he helped the young boy up.

"No time to apologize, we need to get rid of that." Ken said pointing to the rainbow colored monster approaching.

"Please step aside." Theodore said confidently as he picked up his book. Ken quickly made his way behind Theodore and waited for the older man to make a move. Theodore scanned his book rapidly and stopped somewhere near the end of it. As he did, the card pictured on the book floated right out of it. Theodore grabbed the said card and quickly threw it towards the enemy. The card turned into a megido attack halfway towards its target and hit the creature.

"I-it didn't work?" Theodore exclaimed dumbfounded. This attack was neither a physical nor a magical attack so it should've worked on the said monster. This was the first time that Theodore made a mistake on choosing an attack to use against his adversaries. Meanwhile the multi-colored creature tore off one of its arms and threw it towards Theodore and Ken. The said arm turned into a huge double-edged blade while a new arm grew out of the monster.

"Theodore-san watch out!" Ken said pushing himself and Theodore away from the direction of the multi-colored monster's attack.

"A-are you alright Theodore-san?" Ken asked while looking at his arm which was previously injured bleeding a little.

"Y-you're injured!" Theodore said worried as he noticed the bloodstain on the edge of the sleeve of Ken's shirt.

"It's nothing. This wound's been a while. Are you okay Theodore-san?" Ken asked obviously flinching in pain as he tried to touch the wound lightly.

"Yes, I am alright." Theodore said slowly standing up, picking up his book. The two heard a screeching noise from the multi-colored monster and noticed it moving twice as fast this time towards them.

"My last attack…." Theodore started as the two walked backwards while keeping their eyes on the creature. "It was neither a physical nor magical attack but it did not work on that creature." He continued while Ken just remained silent, he didn't follow what he was trying to say.

"We are in grave danger. You should get out of here. I'll hold the monster back while you do." Theodore suggested.

"But…" Ken started.

"Just do it. I will be fine on my own." Theodore cut him off looking the boy straight in the eye. Ken finally gave in and nodded.

"When I say go, run for it." Theodore said, flipping through the pages of his book again. Another megido card appeared and Theodore waved it around taunting the monster.

"I will make sure this will work next time I throw it towards you." Theodore said waving the card more.

"Come on!" He challenged the creature which increased in speed again and in moments, it was in front of Theodore about to attack him. The man in blue uniform used the card to cut through one of the creature's arms.

"Go!" He said and Ken started running out of the command room.

"Follow me Koromaru-san!" Ken ordered quickly as he headed towards the women's restroom with the weakened dog.

* * *

><p>"It's going to be okay Fuuka. I-I'm gonna heal you and Koro-chan." Yukari said with tears in her eyes holding her friend closely, trying to summon Isis. Ken and Koromaru entered the restroom and quickly approached the two girls.<p>

"Are you alright Yukari-san?" Ken asked, rather calmly to which the brunette nodded in response. Ken sighed turning his attention to the white dog lying near Yukari and the unconscious Fuuka in the older brunette's arms.

"Kala-Nemi, where are you?" Ken asked himself quietly.

"I'm here Ken. I've been trying to talk to you since earlier but you were not responding." The red persona said. Ken's eyes widened.

"W-what do you mean?" Ken asked himself again quietly.

"I am always with you. I am part of you. We are one. So how would I leave you?" Kala-Nemi asked calmly. Ken didn't respond for a while.

"Please heal Fuuka-san and Koromaru-san. They're badly hurt." He said while Yukari looks at him after hearing this.

"You have to summon me with an evoker if I were to do that." Kala-Nemi said. Ken realized that he _does_ not have his evoker and loses whatever hope he had left in himself.

"I-I can't go down. I've been trying to but I keep ending up on the same floor." Ken muttered weakly.

"So you're just going to give up?" his persona asked.

"I-I don't know what to do." Ken said finally slumping on the floor in defeat.

"I came to be because of the resolution you made in your heart." Kala-Nemi started. "At first I thought you were brave. I thought you are strong-willed." The persona continued. "But now I see clearly. I see now why you could no longer hear me clearly. You have lost that courage you found within you and you lost the will of a warrior which you had." Kala-Nemi said.

"Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm not as strong as I used to be…" Ken said in a weak, defeated tone.

"I see. Then that must be it. Perhaps it is right for you to just give up now before more people get hurt." Kala-Nemi said.

"However, answer me this one question." Kala-Nemi said, rather calmly while Ken just waited for him to continue. "Are you giving up on fighting in order to obtain the future that your mother would have wanted you to have? He asked. This made Ken's eyes widen. "You have forgotten about that, haven't you?" Kala-Nemi asked again after a while.

"I…" Ken started, slowly standing up while Yukari looked at him, confused.

"Always remember that and you will never stray." Kala-Nemi said. Ken, once again determined, turned to the confused Yukari.

"Everything is going to be okay Yukari-san. I'll protect you guys. Just stay here. I won't be long." Ken said and took off before Yukari could say anything. True to his word, Ken returned after a few minutes fully armed.

"Ken…" Yukari said looking at the young boy.

"Kala-Nemi!" Ken called out after pulling the trigger of his evoker and Kala-Nemi appeared. Yukari regained hope after seeing Ken's persona. The red persona used his strongest healing skill, mediarahan to heal both Koromaru and Fuuka but it didn't work.

"W-why didn't it work?" Ken asked, confused.

"I-I don't know." Kala-Nemi asked, just as confused as the boy was.

"Come on, try harder Kala-Nemi." Ken told his persona, pulling the trigger of his evoker again. Kala-Nemi appeared once again and tried healing Fuuka and Koromaru. This time, it appears that Kala-Nemi managed to heal the wounds of Fuuka and Koromaru but after a blink of an eye, the wounds returned.

"I'm sorry. It appears that their wounds are beyond my capacity to heal." The red persona said apologetically.

"N-no! No!" Ken was distraught.

"Lemme try." Yukari said looking at Ken. Ken immediately gave his evoker to Yukari.

"Please Isis, hear me. Persona!" Yukari called out and Isis successfully came out. Isis used mediarahan as well to heal their injured comrades but it did not work either.

"W-what's going on here? Why won't our healing magic work?" Yukari asked confused.

"I, I apologize Yukari. It appears that their injuries are not caused by shadows, our enemy. Hence, we cannot heal them." Isis said in her soft, calm voice.

"Wh-what? You guys can't heal them?" Yukari and Ken started to worry again.

"W-what are we going to do?" Ken asked Yukari while the older girl thought for a while.

"The hospital! We need to get them to a hospital!" Yukari said immediately and Ken nodded.

"You guys stay here, I'll call for an ambulance." Ken said as he started sprinting downstairs. On his way down he heard a large thump from the command room and quickly ran back upstairs to the command room. There, he found Theodore trying to get up after hitting the bookshelf.

"T-theodore-san! Are you alright?" Ken asked in worry getting the attention of the creature.

"Yes, I'm alright." Theodore said finally standing up, flipping through his book once again. Ken, now armed successfully puts up a fight with the monster hitting and cutting off its arms. This however was not in his favor for long as the arms just grew back.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, in the restroom, Yukari was crying because of her inability to help her injured friends.<p>

"You're just going to cry?" She heard Isis ask but she did not answer. "You are crying because of your inability to help your injured friends…" Isis continued.

"I know I'm being pathetic but there's nothing I can do." Yukari said in a weak, trembling voice.

"Do not despair because of your inability to help your injured friends. Remember that while you are here, weeping, you have friends fighting to defeat the monster threatening the safety of everyone else." The female persona said still in a calming voice. "Your abilities not only allow you to heal others. You are also given the abilities to prevent more people from getting hurt." Isis continued.

"Prevent more people from getting hurt?" Yukari asked her persona while looking at Fuuka then Koromaru.

"No matter what type of skills you have, defensive, supportive or offensive, they all can be used for preventing more people from being harmed." Isis explained.

"Ken and Theodore are trying their best to beat that monster while I cry here aren't they?" Yukari asked, gently placing Fuuka on the floor.

"I really shouldn't be doing that when I could help them right?" Yukari said with a smile on her face. "Koro-chan, you watch Fuuka okay?" The brunette told the white dog which weakly barked. Yukari picked up Ken's evoker hoping to use it as her weapon and ran towards the command room determined to help destroy the monster.

* * *

><p>Theodore flipped from one page to another taking cards and using it to attack the creature while Ken used his spear to pierce through the said enemy.<p>

"Darn it! Nothing's working!" Ken exclaimed as he landed on his feet after pulling his critical move on the creature. Theodore flipped through his book again and stopped at a page.

"Wait a second!" Theodore exclaimed looking at the card with wide eyes. "This is the card that fell earlier. Perhaps…" He said speaking more to himself as the card floated out of the book.

"Please work!" Theodore said as he threw the card towards the multi-colored creature hitting it.

"Though art I and I am thou. It requires great courage to look at oneself honestly, and forge one's own path." Ken heard a voice in his head say. The boy was sure that it was Kala-Nemi's voice and somehow, these words made him feel very light and he completely forgot about the fatigue and hopelessness he was starting to feel.

While this was happening, the multi-colored creature's colors seemed to have mixed together which resulted in it turning black. It was now no different than a shadow. Ken shook his head after realizing it and attacked the creature with his spear again and this time he managed to knock it down.

"I-it worked!" He exclaimed. This was a good thing. However, the monster managed to get up immediately. Ken dodged the attack with much ease this time and tried piercing through the enemy once more but missed greatly falling over. Theodore was about to throw a card to attack the monster when another attack came through.

"Persona!" Yukari called out.

"Thou art I and I am thou… It requires great courage to look oneself honestly and forge one's own path…" She heard Isis say before appearing. As Yukari heard this, her nervousness was completely drowned out. Isis summoned her strongest offensive ability, garudyne to attack the enemy and managed to knock it down.

"Its weakness is wind!" Yukari exclaimed while looking at Theodore who nodded at her as the card in his hand disappeared and he flipped through his book once more. The man with white hair and golden eyes stopped at a page and threw the card he got to attack the monster with panta rhei.

As Theodore threw the card, Ken managed to get back on his feet looking at Yukari who nodded. Right after panta rhei hit the monster, Yukari summoned Isis again to attack the monster with garudyne making it dizzy. Ken plunged forward with his spear hitting the enemy with a critical attack finally destroying the monster.

* * *

><p>Akihiko's eyes were tightly shut as he waited for the crowbar to hit him on the head but instead he heard a loud metal sound hitting something very close to him. The boxer opens his eyes to find Kenji, unconscious and on top of him was the cover of the dumpster, slightly burnt. Moving his gaze towards the dumpster, he found an unconscious Mitsuru, slightly burnt.<p>

"STAY AWAY FROM HIM!" A flaming Pyro Jack doll shouted floating out of the dumpster.

"M-Minako!" Akihiko was glad that his girlfriend was alright.

The distraction allowed Akihiko to get out of Kazushi's grip and throw him over on the floor. After throwing Kazushi on the floor, Akihiko noticed something different about him. His eyes were actually hollow then he looked at Kenji. He tried opening Kenji's eyes and it was the same, his eyes were hollow.

"Minako, they're not real! We can attack them." Akihiko said as he started beating the crap out of the fake Kazushi. The Pyro Jack doll nodded and waved one of her hands towards the swarm of fake humans approaching which immediately sets them on fire. After Akihiko was sure that the fake Kazushi was unconscious just like Kenji, he turned his attention to the fake Minako who was trying to creep from behind Minako.

"Minako, behind you!" Akihiko warned and Minako turned just in time to avoid her doppelganger's attack. Minako waved both of her hands towards the impostor then a spiral-like flame appeared hitting fake Minako and throwing her to the wall. The impact causes the evoker on the fake Minako's holster to fall on the ground, sliding near Akihiko. Akihiko crawled towards the evoker, picked it up and slowly stood up.

"Come on, please work. Persona!" He called out.

"Thou art I and I am thou. It requires great courage to look oneself honestly, and forge one's own path." Akihiko heard his persona say. These words strangely made Akihiko feel stronger and much calmer than earlier. Caesar finally appeared and summoned his strongest thunder skill, maziodyne, to attack all of the fake humans surrounding him and Minako.

After the bright flashes caused by the thunder skill settle down, Akihiko was back in the store where a few customers along with the store attendant were looking at him. From the next aisle, he heard a female screaming "monster" and he had a strong feeling he knew why.

Akihiko and the others rushed towards the next aisle to find the woman, sitting on the floor, frightened by the Pyro Jack doll. The gray haired boxer instinctively moved towards the Pyro Jack doll and picked it up.

"She saw me move." Minako whispered to Akihiko as he picked her up.

"U-uhmm. Sorry to have caused you any trouble, this doll's battery operated that's why it moves by itself." Akihiko said nervously praying to the heavens that the woman would buy his excuse.

"W-well! You better take care of your things young man! That was very rude!" The now embarrassed woman said as she stood up brushing the dirt off her dress.

"I-I'm sorry." Akihiko said bowing down.

"Are you alright young man?" The store attendant asked, worried. Akihiko finally noticed the blood dripping from the side of his head and quickly stood straight up.

"Y-yeah, I'm alright." Akihiko said.

"Are you sure? That's a whole lot of blood." An old lady asked and Akihiko nodded then quickly left the said aisle proceeding to buy the things he came here for and some medical supplies to take care of his head injury.

* * *

><p>"Dammit Ryoji! Quit slacking off and wake the hell up!" Junpei cried out shaking Ryoji's unconscious body for who knows how long. Finally, Ryoji managed to wake up, albeit feeling like he was gonna throw up. He slowly sat up and was about to throw up when he heard gunshots nearby.<p>

"What was that?" Ryoji asked Junpei in alert.

"Ms. Toriumi beating the crap out of these freaky things." Junpei said with a grin. "But this ain't the time to praise our teacher, we're surrounded too. We gotta regroup soon or we'll be in trouble." The boy with the hat said while Ryoji nodded. Ryoji slowly and shakily stood up and transformed to his shadow form.

"Stay behind me." Shadow Ryoji told the boy with the goatee as he lunged towards the enemies.

"Okay. W-wait a second! No way, I'm not gonna act like a princess who needs protection." Junpei complained as he picked the naginata up and lunged towards the enemy. As he did so, he heard Hermes' and Medea's voices in his head.

"Thou art we and we are thou. It requires great courage to look oneself honestly, and forge one's own path…" They said which strangely made Junpei grin and feel stronger and more confident in himself. This time, he managed to attack the enemies with the naginata properly, actually hitting them instead of just hitting the air which surprised Shadow Ryoji who knew that Junpei only wielded two-handed swords during battles.

"Alright!" Junpei exclaimed with a huge grin as he managed to finish a few of the monsters surrounding them. When the duo saw a path leading to their other companions they both rushed towards Minato and Isako.

"Are you alright Ms. Toriumi?" Junpei asked as he stood in a fighting stance in front of their homeroom teacher.

"Yes I am." Isako said, more calmly now.

"Good." Junpei said as he avoided the attack of one of the monsters and hit it with a slash attack. "Well, we better get to work so we could finish early." The boy with the goatee suggested and Shadow Ryoji and Isako nodded as they prepared to attack. Junpei and Shadow Ryoji lunged towards the enemies knocking them over one by one.

As Isako pulled the triggers of the guns in her hands, she hears Minato's voice in her head. "It requires great courage to look oneself honestly and forge one's own path." She heard him say which greatly encouraged the teacher as she attacked the monsters two at a time. Soon, the trio managed to defeat all the house-like monsters.

"Minato's one lazy dude. He's missin' out on all the fun." Junpei said as he panted while holding the naginata with both of his hands.

"Well there's one enemy left, are you two ready?" Isako asked her students who nodded. "Well then, let's go." She said and the three attacked the huge, building-like monster. The three managed to attack the monster with no problems at all but it didn't even flinch from its position.

"No way!" Junpei exclaimed. Then the building-like monster struck back hitting the three. Junpei flew because of the impact and landed hard on his back.

"Ow, ow, ow!" He complained as he sat up slowly. Shadow Ryoji hit a tree hard and returned to his human form.

"N-no way." He said as he landed on the ground. Isako shut her eyes tight as she was thrown far as well but she didn't feel herself hitting anything painfully, instead she felt someone catching her.

"Sweet!" she heard Junpei say while Ryoji said, "Just in time." She opens her eyes and finds herself in Minato's arms.

"Minato!" She exclaimed happily. Minato smirked at her as he gently put her down back on her feet. Minato lifted one of his palms and blue, ball-like plasma appeared on his palm. He waved the said hand sending the ball of energy towards the building-like monster. The energy ball hits the monster but it didn't seem like it had any effect on the monster.

"It didn't work man!" Junpei exclaimed.

"Wait for it…" Minato said in his calm, patient voice. Soon enough the monster started freezing, starting from the area where the said energy ball hit it.

"Sweet!" Junpei cried out.

"Nice!" Ryoji said on the other hand. Minato just looked at them raising one of his eyebrows. Knowing his best friend, Junpei shook his head and immediately stood up. So did Ryoji.

"Alright, here's our chance!" Junpei said and he lunged towards the enemy followed immediately by Ryoji who transformed to his shadow form. Minato was about to attack as well when he turned to face Isako.

"Let's go." He said with a genuine smile and Isako smiled back. Then the two of them charged towards the enemy.

* * *

><p>"What the hell is wrong with Toriumi?" Grumpy Mr. Ekoda asked in an annoyed tone as he and the other teachers stared at the sleeping Isako Toriumi whom they heard screaming earlier. They have tried waking her but she was in a deep sleep.<p>

"We should call an ambulance." Sengoku era fanatic teacher, Mr. Ono suggested.

"What? No way! If word gets out, the school's reputation would be tarnished badly." Ekoda strongly disagreed. He was, after all, only concerned about the reputation of Gekkoukan High which he would protect at great lengths.

"If something terrible happens to Ms. Toriumi, I assure you that word will get out Mr. Ekoda." Ms. Ounishi, a good friend of Isako's who also clashed with Ekoda at lot, said in a threatening tone.

"Now, now you too, please do not argue." Gentle Mrs. Terauchi said trying to calm both teachers.

"Why don't we just call Edogawa? He's the school nurse so maybe he could do something." Math teacher, Ms. Miyahara suggested.

"Good idea. Kanou, get Edogawa." Ekoda ordered rather authoritatively.

"What? Why me?" Ms. Kanou asked, complaining a bit. "I was just about to leave." She continued. Ekoda closed his eyes tight and tried to hold in his anger for a few seconds.

"Takenozuka, get Edogawa. NOW." Ekoda ordered the physics teacher who decided not to argue with the angry Ekoda and left for the clinic. Moments later, Isako opened her eyes and lifted her head from her desk while looking at everyone weirdly.

"Ms. Toriumi, are you alright?" Ms. Ounishi asked the Japanese teacher.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. What's the matter?" A slightly dazed and confused Isako Toriumi asked.

"You were screaming while you were asleep, you disrupted our work." Ekoda said in a disgusted tone.

"I'm not talking to you." Isako replied bitterly.

"We tried waking you up but you wouldn't so we were all worried." Ounishi explained.

"Ekoda, worried?" Isako looked at her fellow teacher raising one of her eyebrows.

"School's reputation." Ounishi quickly answered.

"Figures." Isako said while Edogawa and Takenozuka enter the Faculty Room.

"What's the matter?" The school nurse asked.

"Never mind, we don't need your help anymore. Just go back to the clinic." Ekoda said, a bit more calmly this time.

"We apologize for bothering your work. Thank you Mr. Edogawa." Mrs. Terauchi said politely. The school nurse wanted to complain but Ekoda glared at him so he just sighed and left the faculty office. After the other teachers left, Ms. Ounishi sat down right next to Isako who had a smile on her face.

"I had a very strange dream, but it was a good dream." She told her friend.

* * *

><p>Okay, so I'm really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really and continuously really sorry for the slow updates. I've been very busy lately so I could barely write.<p>

I do hope everyone liked this chapter. And hopefully, I can update soon rest assured, I am already working on the next chapter.

Sorry if I failed to explain a few things in the chapter very well, I tried my best. And I couldn't come up with names for the monsters I made up so I didn't name them.

A quick preview of the next chapter - The gang gets in trouble and someone dies. I had to do it. It just really had to be done.

Thank you so much for taking time to read my fanfiction and I hope you enjoyed reading it just as much as I enjoyed writing it.


	9. Chapter 9 Investigations

Chapter 9: Investigations

"What's the matter Mitsuru?" Artemisia asked.

"I-I don't know." Mitsuru answered scrunching her eyebrows. She was reading a book in her hotel room then the next thing she knows, she's on the street, walking aimlessly.

"H-how did I get here?" Mitsuru asked herself.

"You suddenly left the hotel and started walking around the streets. I tried asking you earlier where we were going but you were not responding. " Her persona explained.

"Don't you really remember anything?" The persona asked again.

"If I did, I would not be this confused. Let's head back to the hotel." Mitsuru replied as she started walking. She walked around for a while before she stopped. "This is not good." Mitsuru looked around.

"What's the matter?" she heard her persona ask.

"I've no clue where we are." Mitsuru said, biting her lower lip.

* * *

><p>Minato slowly opened his eyes after hearing sirens nearby. As he comes to, he realizes he's back in the dorm, as Jack Frost once more. He was about to speak when Ken grabbed him and covered his mouth. He looked at Ken and saw him motion for Minato to remain still and quiet so the Jack Frost doll turned around and acted like a normal doll as footsteps and then voices echoed from the hallway.<p>

"So you're saying that she slipped?" An annoyed husky male voice asked.

"Yes, she slipped because the floor was wet." Minato was sure Yukari was the one who answered.

"And what about the mirrors?" The male voice asked again.

"O-oh… The mirrors? The mirrors! You see we were planning to replace the mirrors, some had cracks and stuff." Yukari was lying, Minato was sure of it.

Soon, Yukari appeared from the hallway followed by a man, about 6 feet tall, medium build, brown hair and eyes.

"Alright then, thank you for answering my questions miss." He said as two men, clearly medics, came from the hallway, stretcher in hand. On the stretcher was a badly injured and unconscious Fuuka. Yukari walked the man to the door before he turned around to face her.

"I will come back to ask you more questions." He said sternly and left. Yukari and Ken sighed in relief as the door closed.

* * *

><p>"What happened to Fuuka?" Minato asked when Ken let go of him.<p>

"We don't know…" Yukari started. "But strange things happened while you were asleep. We found her badly injured in the restroom in the fourth floor." She continued.

"Theodore?" the Jack Frost doll asked.

"He said he doesn't remember anything." The brunette replied. "Let's head to the command room." She continued as Ken grabbed the Jack Frost doll and the rabbit doll then they went up to the fourth floor.

Upon entering the command room, they find a trembling Theodore, his head low covered by both his arms.

"Are you alright hee-ho?" The Jack Frost doll asked but the man did not respond.

"What's wrong Theodore-san?" Ken asked as he placed the Jack Frost doll and the rabbit doll on a nearby table however, the said man still did not respond.

"He wasn't like this before we went down." Yukari said, worried about the man.

"What exactly happened hee-ho?" Minato asked his companions and Yukari and Ken looked at each other. After a while, Yukari decided to explain everything they experienced earlier in detail.

"Hee-ho? I had a strange dream earlier too." The blue-haired boy replied after Yukari told him about earlier then retold his adventure with Junpei, Ryoji and Ms. Toriumi then they noticed Ryoji jumping up and down waving his arms in the air hysterically.

"You had the same dream?" Minato asked and the rabbit doll nodded.

"Do you think this has anything to do with the shards?" he asked the rabbit doll again which motioned that it didn't know.

"We need to look further into this." Yukari said.

"Yeah, but…" Ken looked at the older girl, worried.

"I know. We just gotta find a way to cover this up." The archery club captain said.

"I…" Theodore started, still trembling with his hands over his slumped head. This single word from the older man immediately caught the attention of everyone else. "I remember… everything…" He continued while the others who were seated went closer to him.

"I…" He started again, hesitantly. "I was the one who hurt Fuuka…" He said. His voice clearly terrified as he continued to tremble. "I am responsible for her current condition." The man with golden eyes said. "I… I attacked her. I could not prevent myself from doing so. I do not understand why…" He said, lifting his head a bit. Theodore was clearly confused and he was shaking.

"It is my fault. I… I…." He said then he suddenly screamed as his eyes watered.

"Theo..." Yukari tried to calm the terrified and confused man. Nobody could find the right words to tell the frustrated man so everybody just remained silent.

"Hee-ho? I'm hungry, can we eat?" Minato suddenly asked after a while and Yukari sighed as she stood up.

"It's okay Yukari-san. I'll finish cooking. Just stay with Theodore-san." Ken offered while Yukari nodded and sat back down next to their confused visitor.

"Come on you guys." Ken told the dolls and the rabbit doll jumped on top of the Jack Frost doll's head that quickly followed Ken.

* * *

><p>"Sound's gone and everything's back to normal…" Shinjiro thought to himself as he walked on the busy street.<p>

The street lights were on and the place was full of people again. Shinjiro thought of the possibility that the said event earlier was the Dark Hour. There were two things off about this theory though, one: there were no coffins, signs of ordinary people transmogrifying. Actually, there were no people, sans Shinjiro, during the said time. If he were inside Tartarus, he'd see Shadows here and there but there weren't any. Two: it wasn't 12 midnight, the time in which the Dark Hour starts.

"You sense anything wrong here?" Shinjiro asked, clearly addressing his persona. Shinjiro waited for a bit but his persona did not answer. "You ain't a genius but you ain't that stupid either so stop acting like you're knocked out or somethin'." Shinjiro said, waiting for his persona to respond.

"Fine. Don't talk. Ya don't exist anymore." He said as he started walking back to his apartment.

"Hey, I'm just kidding. Don't take it too seriously. So, what did you take?" Castor finally spoke and Shinjiro took out the bottle from earlier.

"Acetaminophen. Acetaminophen?" Castor read. "What the hell is that?" He asked the brunette but the boy just ignored his persona as he returned the bottle in his pocket.

"Acetaminophen…. Acetaminophen… Hmmmm…" His persona kept repeating, obviously trying to bother him.

"Somethin' to get rid of the headache you're giving me." Shinjiro finally said.

"Ohhh... Pain reliever." Castor finally understood. Shinjiro thought he'd be able to get back to his apartment in peace now since his persona hadn't been bothering him for a little over 5 minutes but just as he was about to open the door to his apartment the persona started again.

"So you really stopped taking those meds. Chicken." Castor mocked.

"Tch." The brunette brushed him off.

"Chicken, chicken, chicken. He won't take the pills anymore because he's scared he might die." Castor teased more.

"I ain't scared of death." Shinjiro was clearly starting to get even more pissed off which only encouraged his persona to mock him more.

"Chicken, chicken, chicken. Shinjiro Aragaki acts like his some kind of tough bastard but he's just a big softy." The persona said and he was getting too far with his mockery.

"Three words. Execution by Mitsuru." Shinjiro said as he opened the door to his apartment and entered. As Castor heard the name, he immediately stopped talking. Though he would not admit it, he was afraid of Mitsuru and Artemisia. He doesn't even think there's anybody who would not be afraid of them. Shinjiro smirked.

* * *

><p>"Quite a peculiar doll you got there." The driver said as he turned in a corner while taking a quick glance through his rearview mirror.<p>

"Uhmmm… It's my….? My sister's…" The gray haired boxer said immediately and defensively, his eyes starting to be blurry. He was dizzy again and through the strong suggestion of his worried girlfriend, he got a cab and headed for the hospital.

"Just lean back, we're not too far from the hospital now." The cab driver said as he heard a weak grunt from his passenger. About a minute or two later, he pulled over by the emergency room. "Alright, here we are." The driver said as he faced his passenger.

"Thanks." Akihiko said, paying the driver.

"Want me to help you walk?" The driver offered but the boxer quickly shook his head as he got down from the cab.

After his first few steps to the emergency room, he collapsed. The cab driver was quick to see this as he was about to drive off and immediately stopped, got off his cab and helped the unconscious teenager. The guard was quick to notice this as well as he quickly left his post to get the boy to the emergency room.

Minako landed on her back on the ground as all this happened. She wanted to help Akihiko but she knew if she moved, it would cause too much trouble and the help intended for the gray haired boy would be delayed. As the driver and the guard brought Akihiko inside the emergency room, the Pyro Jack doll got left behind in the driveway. She sat up and looked around and started to make her way to the emergency room as stealthily as possible but she heard the emergency room door open. She saw the cab driver step out and she scrambled back to her original position when she landed on the ground.

"Hmmm…?" The cab driver stared at the doll. "His sister's doll, huh?" The said cab driver picked up the Pyro Jack doll and wiped its face. "Then somebody is missing you right now." He told the doll not really aware that a spirit was inside of it.

The cab driver took the doll inside the cab and went back to talk to the guard. The guard then went inside the emergency room while the driver waited outside. Moments later, the guard came out holding something and gave it to the driver then the driver returned to the cab.

"So…. Akihiko Sanada huh? A Gekkoukan High student…" He said as he sat on the driver's seat looking at the ID. "No address… So where am I going to bring you?" He asked, turning to the doll at the backseat.

* * *

><p>"Hey, are Akihiko-senpai and Minako back?" Yukari asked as she came down from the fourth floor with a more stable, but still overwhelmed, Theodore.<p>

"No." Ken said as he turned the TV off. The brunette looked at her watch for a moment.

"They've been gone for three hours now. The convenience store's just a few blocks away." The brunette archer said, worried. "Can you go look for them?" Yukari asked.

"Okay." Ken answered as he stood up and left the dorm. The remaining occupants of the dorm were silent after this. Minato was starting to feel drowsy, Yukari didn't know what to say, Theodore couldn't get himself to speak and Ryoji… Well, you get the idea.

About 10 minutes later, Yukari receives a message and opens it. "The store manager said they left more than an hour ago. I'll try to look around. – Ken" She read loudly. "Well that's convenient." She said then saw Ryoji writing on his board. After writing his message, the rabbit doll shows the board to Yukari who immediately blushes. Minato, curious, crawls from behind Ryoji to beside the board and reads what was written.

"Akihiko-senpai and Minako…. Hmmmm…" The Jack Frost doll thought for a while then turned to Ryoji. "Is that possible? A guy and a…. doll hee-ho?" He asked Ryoji who folded his rabbit arms and thought for a while then shook his head. Yukari sighed and shook her head when her blush settled.

"You're like a replica of Stupei." She said, obviously addressing the rabbit doll. "A smaller, better-looking replica of Junpei hee-ho." Minato said then he giggled. The rabbit doll looked at Yukari obviously a reaction because of the giggle.

"Don't even ask." Yukari said as she rolled her eyes. The rabbit doll then erased the writing on his board and started writing something else. Minato looked confused at what was written while Yukari just rolled her eyes. Then, the phone rings. Yukari stood up and answers the phone.

"Hello?" Yukari answered. "Okay. Thanks." She said then hung up. She looked at her companions and sighed.

"Theo, can you please–" She started but stopped halfway. "I'm gonna have to leave you guys." She said.

"Where are you going hee-ho?" Minato asked.

"To the hospital. Someone has to look after Fuuka." Yukari answered.

"You guys should be fine without me for a while, right? Ken shouldn't take too long." She told the three, worried as she looked at the man in the blue uniform who hung his head low. Ryoji wrote down on his board then showed it to Yukari. Yukari just shook her head and left the dorm.

* * *

><p>Akihiko slowly opened his eyes. He doesn't know where he exactly was. The ceiling was white and the smell was… weird. It was a smell he didn't like. It was like a mixture of antiseptics, medicine, blood and something else he couldn't name.<p>

"Oh, you're finally awake." A female voice said and he tried to sit up. As he sat up, he immediately felt dizzy. "Careful now, don't move so suddenly." The female, a nurse, said.

"What am I doing here?" a confused Akihiko asked the nurse who helped him sit up on the bed.

"Well, you have a head injury and you collapsed earlier Mr. Sanada." The nurse said then a man holding a weird looking doll enters. The boxer looked confused.

"We found your ID from your wallet. That's where we got your name." The nurse said with a smile as she left the room.

"It's good that you're awake. I couldn't just leave you since I'm the last person with you. I'll be responsible if anything happens." The man said with a smile but Akihiko just frowned. "You dropped this earlier. I was going to take it to your house but I didn't know where you lived." The man continued as he placed the doll on the table near Akihiko and sat down.

"So, your name's Akihiko Sanada huh?" The man said while Akihiko did not speak. He continued to look confused. "This doll… Your sister's doll, it's a peculiar doll. Isn't she scared of it?" the man asked looking at the Pyro Jack doll. Minako wanted to burn the man.

"I…" Akihiko started.

"Hmmmm?" the man looked at him, his eyebrows scrunched.

"I don't remember." The gray haired boxer said, frowning.

"What don't you remember?" the older man asked.

"Everything." The boxer answered, looking away.

"Let me call the doctor then." The man said as he stood up and left the room. As soon as the door closed, Minako moved and looked at Akihiko in worry.

"Aki, are you okay?" the Pyro Jack doll asked.

"W-what the? What the hell are you?" Akihiko started to panic. Minako looked at him, wanting to cry. "D-demon! There's a demon here!" Akihiko shouted hysterically as a doctor, a few nurses and the driver came in running while Minako froze.

"Mr. Sanada, it's okay. There's no demon here. It's just us." The doctor said trying to calm him down but he continued to scream. The doctor sighed and looked at the nurses. "Hold him down." He said. Three nurses tried to hold Akihiko down while a fourth nurse brought in a syringe with a clear liquid inside. The doctor took it from the nurse as he helped out in holding Akihiko down.

After a while, all the sounds that Akihiko was hearing seemed so far and the room looked like it was spinning and he lost consciousness.

* * *

><p>"What's up with him doc?" the driver asked, worried about the boy.<p>

"I don't know. We're going to have to run a few tests on him. Are you his father?" The doctor asked looking at the taller man.

"No, I'm just the driver who brought him here. I wanted to make sure he's alright." The driver explained.

"I see. Well even if we run the tests on him now, it will take a while before we get the results." The doctor explained.

"Alright. Do you have a pen and a paper?" The driver asked and the doctor handed him some.

"That's my contact number. Call me once the results come out. My name's Masaharu Masaki by the way." The driver said as he headed for the door, stopped and turned around then took the Pyro Jack doll with him.

"I'll see if I can find where he lives and bring this doll back to his sister." He told the hospital employees who were looking at him weirdly as he left.

* * *

><p>As Masaharu walked in the quiet hallway of the hospital he bumps into a brunette girl wearing a pink blouse and blue denims.<p>

"Oh, I'm sorry miss. Are you alright?" He asked as he looked at the smaller, younger girl.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry about that mister." The brunette said and looked at the doll he was holding.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Masaharu asked looking at the girl who quickly nodded and continued to walk. Masaharu proceeded walking quietly while Minako wanted to shout.

"Yukari, it's me! Come on, look back." Minako thought as Masaharu and Yukari's distance from each other grew. "Oh no…." Minako thought as she quickly glanced up to look at the man holding her. She sighed as she looked back at Yukari near the end of the hallway.

"YUKARI!" Minako shouted. The man stopped and so did Yukari. Yukari looked back to see who called out her name. It sounded like Minako's voice she thought. At the same time, Masaharu took a closer look at the Pyro Jack doll he was holding, preventing Minako from making any movements to get Yukari's attention.

Yukari resumed walking quietly down the hallway turning right while Minako and Masaharu left the hospital. Masaharu started the car after placing the Pyro Jack doll on the passenger's seat and looks at it.

"I guess I'll be keeping you for a while then." He said, obviously talking to the doll while he drove.

"Why does this keep happening to me?" Minako asked herself.

* * *

><p>"I'm back." Ken said as he entered the dorm. He looked around and only saw Theodore who hung his head low but he was clearly awake, the rabbit doll was watching a game show and the Jack Frost doll was sleeping on the table.<p>

"Where's Yukari-san?" Ken asked. Ryoji took his board and started writing.

"Oh. Did she say anything about how Fuuka-san's doing now?" Ken asked and the rabbit doll shook its head. Ken sighed as he took the remote from Ryoji. "It's been a long day. We should all rest." He said as he turned the TV off. The young boy then locked the door and picked up the rabbit doll and the Jack Frost doll.

"Theodore-san, you can stay in Minato-san's room." He said looking at the speechless man sitting on the couch. Ken sighed when the man did not respond and headed to the kitchen. The boy opened the fridge and placed the sleeping Jack Frost doll inside with the rabbit doll looking at him confused.

"Don't ask." Ken said, clearly tired. When he stepped out of the kitchen, Theodore was no longer in the lounge so he turned the lights off and went up to the second floor with the rabbit doll in hand. On the second floor, he saw Theodore who was staring at Minato's door.

"It's unlocked." Ken told him and he turned to look at the younger boy blankly. Ken just sighed and entered his own room. Inside his room, he made a makeshift bed for his visitor, the rabbit doll.

After preparing the makeshift bed, he placed the rabbit doll on it and sat on his own bed. Ryoji looked at the tired boy for a while and started writing on his board. Ken looked at the writing and frowned.

"If this is how things are gonna be while we try to get them back, then maybe it's better that they don't come back at all." Ken said bitterly without looking at the doll. Ryoji erased what he wrote and wrote something else.

"Of course I want them back but is it really worth it? Fuuka-san and Koromaru-san both got badly hurt because of this mission." The young boy said. "What about the following missions? More people will get hurt and there's nothing I can do. I can't heal them." He continued. Ryoji wrote something again.

"So you're just gonna give up helping the same people who sacrificed themselves because other people refused to live their lives to the fullest?" It said but Ken didn't answer back. Instead, he lied down on his bed, his back turned to Ryoji as he covered himself with his blanket. Ryoji sighed as he sat on the makeshift bed made of a pillow and a towel and placed the board and marker near him. He looked at the young boy and heard a few sniffles. He was crying. Ryoji was sure but there was nothing he could do.

* * *

><p>It was early in the morning and usually, Theodore would feel refreshed after a good night's sleep but not today. He barely got any shuteye because of the shock he had yesterday.<p>

Until now, he still can't accept that he was responsible for Fuuka's injuries. Even though the others have already told him it was an accident, he still couldn't accept it. Of all people he could hurt by accident, it had to be her. It had to be Fuuka. He sighed as he turned on the TV to watch the news and of course, the news featured a student from Gekkoukan High about 5'0" named Fuuka Yamagishi who is currently at the hospital fighting for her life after an accident at her dorm the previous evening.

According to the reporter, Detective Akira Takeyama will be investigating on this "accident" to find out if her dorm mates were telling the truth or they had something to do with the said incident. "I think those kids are hiding something from me and I will find out what it is. I will bring justice for Miss Yamagishi." The detective said seriously. Theodore sighed as he watched the news while the front door opened.

"Oh, you're up early." A tired looking Yukari greeted. Theodore just looked at her as her attention turned to the TV. Yukari sighed as she saw what the man was watching.

"Watching that won't make you feel any better." She told him. "And so does not talking to us and ignoring us." She continued but the man with golden eyes still did not respond.

"In other news, a teenager named Akihiko Sanada has also been confined at the same hospital." The anchorwoman said. As soon as Yukari heard this, she turned around and sat down next to Theodore.

"Turn the TV up." She said.

"Akihiko Sanada, 18 years old, was a student of Gekkoukan High before graduating last March. The hospital staff said Akihiko Sanada suffered a head injury and collapsed last night as he arrived in the hospital probably to have the said injury treated. Sources say that he also stayed in the same dorm as Fuuka Yamagishi which makes us wonder if the incidents that brought them both to the hospital are related and if there is someone responsible for this." The anchorwoman said.

"Akihiko-senpai…" Yukari said, clearly worried. "Come to think of it… I did hear Minako's voice last night." She thought. "Wait! Didn't the man last night have a Pyro Jack doll with him?" She asked herself. "Oh God, please don't let that be her. It might take forever to find her." She told herself.

"Oh. Good morning Yukari-san. You came back early." The brunette was startled when the youngest occupant of the dorm suddenly appeared in the lounge and greeted her.

"How did you get here?" Yukari asked absent-mindedly while Ken gave her a confused look.

"I walked from the second floor, to the hallway then here?" The boy replied. "How's Fuuka-san?" He asked as he sat on the couch across Yukari and Theodore.

"Well, she was a bit better before I left." Yukari answered.

"Is that why you left her?" Ken asked innocently.

"Well… Not exactly… Her parents…. They arrived and when they did, they told me to leave and to stay away from Fuuka. They said they don't want any of us to go anywhere near her." The brunette archer said sadly.

"Oh…" Ken looked down on to his feet. "By the way, Yukari-san… Sanada-san and Minako-san never came home last night." Ken managed to say after a while.

"I know. I just heard from the news that Akihiko-senpai's at the hospital." Yukari replied while Ken looked at her in shock. "They said he has a head injury and he collapsed and they're suspecting that one of us did that to him and to Fuuka." She explained further.

"Yukari-san…" Ken looked at Theodore. Yukari covered her mouth as she saw Theodore hanging his head low again.

"Me and my big mouth..." She sighed. "Has the vet called?" Yukari finally managed to ask after a while and Ken shook his head.

"Vet?" Theodore spoke up for the first time since last night.

"Veterinarian. You know, the doctor for animals." Yukari said.

"They called earlier. They said Koromaru-san can go home anytime." The man with golden eyes said without looking at anybody or anything in particular.

"Oh, that's good. Ken, can you go pick him up please? I'll just take a shower then go back to the hospital to check on Akihiko-senpai and Minako." Yukari said.

"Are you sure Yukari-san? You look tired." Ken said observing the older girl. After Yukari yawned and rubbed her eyes she was about to answer when Ken cut her off. "I'll go pick up Koromaru-san, drop him here then go check on Sanada-san." Ken said.

"Are you sure you can do it all?" Yukari asked the younger boy who nodded.

"I can manage." He said. "Just go get some rest Yukari-san." The young boy continued as he got up from the couch and started heading for the stairs, probably to take a shower.

"I'll order some food for the others before I leave." Ken said. "By the way Yukari-san, Minato-san is still inside the freezer." The young boy said as he disappeared from the hallway. Yukari got up from her seat and headed for the kitchen to get Minato from the freezer.

"Good morning hee-ho." Minato greeted as soon as Yukari opened the freezer.

"Good morning." Yukari said, yawning.

"You look tired hee-ho. You should rest." The Jack Frost doll said in a sweet, innocent tone.

"I will." Yukari said as she brought the Jack Frost doll to the living room where Theodore was slowly falling asleep then left the Jack Frost doll to watch TV and went up to her room to rest.

* * *

><p>Half an hour later, Ken comes down to find Theodore asleep in the couch while the Jack Frost doll pestered the young boy to get him food as he laid the rabbit doll on the table. Ken dialed a number on the landline and ordered some food for everyone. He looked at Theodore and he figured the man would be out for a while so he decided to wait for the food to arrive.<p>

Another half hour later, someone rings the doorbell and Ken answers the door. It's the delivery guy with all the food Ken ordered. After paying the guy, he brought the food to the kitchen and later returned with two plates with rice, sweet and sour pork and a glass of ice. Minato immediately and literally dug into his plate eating to his heart's content while the rabbit doll wrote on his board.

"Then I'll eat it. I'm hungry anyway." Ken said after reading the writing on the board and grabbed the other plate and ate.

"If Theodore-san and Yukari-san gets hungry, the food is inside the fridge. Minato-san, please try not to eat everything. They need to eat too." Ken said as he brought his plate to the kitchen after eating while the Jack Frost doll nodded. After putting the plate back in the -kitchen, the young boy left the dorm. On his way to the train station, the man from last night approached him.

* * *

><p>"You're Ken Amada right?" The man asked. Ken just stared at him, uncomfortably and a bit suspicious.<p>

"I was in your dorm last night?" the man said but Ken still didn't answer. "Detective Akira Takeyama, I'm investigating Fuuka Yamagishi's _accident_." He said, emphasizing on the word accident as he reached his hand out to Ken but Ken didn't extend his hand to shake the man's hand.

"Like Yukari-san said, it _was _an accident." The young boy said making sure to put emphasis on was.

"It could be. However, we can never be too sure now, can we?" the detective answered observing Ken closely.

"What do you want?" Ken asked uncomfortably.

"Well, I'd like you to come with me." The detective told him.

"If you're not hiding anything from me, you wouldn't have any problems coming with me won't you?" he asked staring at Ken which made Ken flinch a bit. "This way." The detective said escorting the boy to his car.

Minutes later, they were in the police station. As they walked through the hallways to the detective's office, Ken saw a familiar man in civilian clothes walking to the opposite direction. Ken and the detective enter his office and the detective closes the door behind him.

"Make yourself at home. Water or juice?" The detective asked as Ken sat down on one of the chairs. He didn't respond. The detective sighed seeing that the boy didn't respond and sat down on his chair and moved closer to Ken.

"Now, tell me exactly what happened." He ordered.

"There's nothing more to tell you. It was an accident. She slipped." Ken said, not looking at the detective.

"Can you tell me that while looking me in the eye?" The witty detective asked but Ken didn't respond.

"There is something you kids are keeping from me. Tell me what you're hiding or I'll have no choice but to force the answer out of you." The detective said, raising his voice. Ken flinched but he didn't respond.

"Who lives in that dorm aside from you, Yukari Takeba and Fuuka Yamagishi?" The detective asked, calming down a little.

"Just the three of us and Koromaru." Ken quickly answered.

"A dorm with only three occupants? That's a bit suspicious." The detective said. He was about to say more when he was interrupted by someone barging in into his office. It was Officer Kurosawa.

"I'm sorry sir. I didn't know you had a visitor." He said as he tried to fix his clothes.

"What do you want Kurosawa?" the detective asked in an annoyed tone.

"Chief wants to talk to you." Kurosawa says seriously as the detective stands up from his chair and sighs.

"I'll invite you for a little chat again, for now you may go." He tells the young boy then leaves the office.

* * *

><p>"You alright?" Kurosawa asks Ken once he was sure that the detective was no longer in sight. Ken nods as he stands up from the chair and heads for the door.<p>

"Thank you Officer Kurosawa." Ken thanks the man and the two head for the exit of the police station. As soon as they were out, Kurosawa looks around then leans closer to Ken.

"You kids better watch your backs. Takeyama's sharp." He whispers and walks away.

* * *

><p>Akihiko opens his eyes and the first thing he sees is white. Everything white. And the smell was painful to the nose. He was still at the hospital.<p>

"Feeling any better Mr. Sanada?" The doctor from last night asked him while Akihiko nodded.

"Do you remember anything now?" The doctor asked again. Akihiko thought for a while then shook his head.

"Well, the results for your tests will be out right about now so we'll find out what's wrong soon." The doctor said and gave the younger man a smile. He turned to leave the room when the door opened. It was a young boy. A very familiar young boy, Akihiko thought. He looked like he was still in elementary school. Maybe he's lost or maybe he's the doctor's kid, Akihiko thought.

"How may I help you?" The doctor asked as he placed his pen back on his pocket.

"Sanada-san!" Ken said with an innocent smile on his face.

"Oh, you know him?" the doctor asked.

"We live in the same dorm. I came to check up on him." Ken said as he approached the gray haired boxer. "I'm glad you're okay Sanada-san. We were worried because you never came home last night." Ken told Akihiko while Akihiko looked at him confused.

"Who are you?" He asked and Ken looked shocked. The young boy quickly turned to the doctor.

"What's wrong with him?" He asked.

"We're just about to find out. The results for the tests we ran last night are out now. I'm going to get it." The doctor said as he fixed his eyeglasses and left the room.

* * *

><p>"It's me, Ken." Ken started as he sat on the chair next to the bed while looking at the older, confused guy. "We lived in the same dorm before you finished high school." The young boy explained but Akihiko didn't seem to react. He just looked more confused than he was earlier.<p>

"Dorm?" He asked and Ken nodded. "I… lived in a dorm?" Akihiko asked again and Ken nodded.

"What happened, Sanada-san?" Ken asked.

"I… I don't remember. The last thing I remember was…." Akihiko thought for a while then frowned. "Nothing." He said. "I just woke up here not even remembering my own name." He continued. Ken frowned and sighed and after a while, he decided to ask about Minako.

"Sanada-san, where's Mina- I mean the Pyro Jack doll you had with you?" he asked.

"Pyro Jack doll?" Akihiko looked more confused.

"Oh, you mean the weird, cursed doll that moved and talked by itself?" Akihiko asked Ken and the boy nodded. "I… I don't know. He took it with him." The boxer explained.

"He?" Ken asked and Akihiko nodded.

"I can't remember his name." Akihiko said.

"Come on Sanada-san, there must be at least one thing you can remember." Ken said standing up from his chair. "Me? Aragaki-san? Mitsuru-san? Caesar? Minako-san?" the young boy was frustrated and he was holding back his tears. Akihiko just frowned as he shook his head.

"Come on Sanada-san. At least remember Minako-san. Look into your heart. I know you'd remember her." Ken said as tears started to well up. At this moment, the door opened and the doctor came back with papers, lots of them in a clipboard.

"I'm sorry. Did I come in at a bad time?" He asked with a smile as he looked through the papers.

"No. It's fine." Ken said sitting on the chair. "What's wrong with him doctor? Why can't he remember anything?" the young boy asked.

"Well…" The doctor started flipping through the papers on his clipboard.

"Mr. Sanada's head injury is not that severe. It was actually just a small wound to his head that seems to have been caused by broken glass. According to the record here, he came here last night probably to have the injury treated but collapsed as soon as he stepped out of the taxi. He fell to the ground hard and hit his head once more causing the actual damage to his brain which resulted to memory loss." Ken didn't speak, he looked confused.

"His memory loss is not caused by his head injury but by his fall when he collapsed." The doctor explained and Ken finally seemed to understand.

"You said his head injury wasn't that bad so how come he fainted?" Ken asked while the doctor looked at him, fixing his eyeglasses.

"Yes, it wasn't a serious head injury but he may have been dizzy by the time he got to the hospital so he collapsed. There's really no telling why he collapsed but that is my guess." The doctor explains.

"How do we get his memory back?" Ken asked.

"I'm afraid there's nothing we can do. Only time can determine when he'll get his memories back." The doctor said. This wasn't a situation where the doctor can give the patient medicine to get better. This was something that may or may not get better in time. Ken scrunched his eyebrows. He wanted to scream. Fuuka and Koromaru are hurt, Minako's missing and Akihiko doesn't remember anything.

"There must be a medicine you can give him so he can regain his memories." Ken told the doctor but he just shook his head. Ken slumped on the ground and started crying hard. Akihiko frowned at the sight while the doctor put his clipboard aside and tried to calm the boy down. The air in the room was very heavy with only Ken's cries can be heard when the door opened. It was the driver from yesterday.

"Oh. Looks like I came at a bad time. Maybe I should come back later." He said as he turned around to leave the room.

* * *

><p>Masaharu leaned on the wall as he waited for the doctor to come out from the room. He was hoping that he would be bringing him good news. Minutes later, the doctor came out with the clipboard in his hand fixing his eyeglasses.<p>

"How is he doc?" Masaharu asked.

"Mr. Masaki, was it?" The doctor greeted while Masaharu nodded.

"The boy has post-traumatic amnesia. The head injury worsened when he hit the ground hard." The doctor explained.

"So all we can do is wait and see what happens huh?" The driver asked and the doctor nodded. "Who's the boy?" He asked again.

"A friend of the patient, he said they live in the same dorm." The doctor replied. "If you'll excuse me…" The doctor said and left while Masaharu took a deep breath as he grabbed the doorknob.

* * *

><p>"Hey…" He greeted the upset boy as he slowly entered the room. "So you're a friend of his' huh?" He asked but the boy didn't respond. Masaharu just sighed then sat on another chair. "I'm Masaharu Masaki. You going to introduce yourself?" the friendly man asked the boy who gave him a quick glance.<p>

"Ken Amada." He answered. The name rings a bell in Akihiko's mind but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"Nice to meet you Ken." Masaharu said with a smile. "Since you two are friends, perhaps you could help me out." He continued. Ken looked at him.

"Do you know his sister?" Masaharu asked and Ken looked at him confused. "What's the matter? You don't?" He asked again.

"My… sister…?" Akihiko thought, even though he doesn't remember anything, it feels as though he did have a sister. Or at least he had one. "Had…?" Akihiko wondered as he scrunched his eyebrows, getting confused even more. It took Ken a while before he decided to answer the older man.

"Sanada-san's… sister?" The young boy asked. Masaharu nodded. Just then, something beeped. It looked like some sort of PDA, Ken noted. Masaharu sighed as he looked at it.

"Well, I have to get back to work. I have a passenger waiting for me. I'll talk to you later." The man said with a smile then left.

* * *

><p>"Are you okay now?" Chidori asked her boyfriend as she watched him moved a little on the couch while opening his eyes. Junpei didn't respond and looked around his surroundings confused. Chidori stared at him for a while then spoke up.<p>

"You were taking so long in the bathroom so I checked on you." She said while Junpei stared at her still confused.

"I found you on the floor, I tried waking you up and you didn't. And you kept calling Minato." The redhead continued. At the mention of his name, Junpei's head started clearing as he recalled what happened earlier. He rubbed the back of his head as he sat up from the couch and felt his right arm sore. Although he acted cool about it, Chidori noticed how the goateed boy flinched in pain.

"You wouldn't wake up and you were heavy so I dragged you from the bathroom to the couch." She explained in monotone. Though not the brightest guy out there, Junpei knew this explains his arm being sore.

"I, I had the strangest dream." Junpei started. Chidori, who sat across him, looked at him patiently.

"I, I was back in Iwatodai. A-and Minato was there. And then Ryoji and even Ms. Toriumi. Then there were these monsters that tried to kill us." He continued.

"I know who Minato is. But who are Ryoji and Ms… Tobiyumi?" Chidori asked, in a slightly jealous manner.

"It's Ms. Toriumi. She was my homeroom teacher last school year. Ryoji was a transfer student and classmate for a while before his family moved somewhere else." Junpei explained still in a confused tone.

"Why would you dream about your homeroom teacher?" Chidori asked again, jealousy was still in her tone. Junpei sighed and looked at his girlfriend's eyes.

"I don't know. Maybe… Maybe because she was close to Minato." He explained.

"I thought Minato's girlfriend's name was Yuka-tan?" Chidori asked, now in a normal tone.

"Yeah, Yuka-tan _is_ Minato's girlfriend. Ms. Toriumi became his close friend when he played Innocent Sin." Junpei explained.

"Innocent Sin? Isn't that the game?" Chidori looked at her boyfriend, curious now and Junpei nodded.

"Minato said Ms. Toriumi played the game to relieve stress or something like that." He explained.

"Did you play Innocent Sin too Junpei?" Chidori asked and Junpei nodded again.

"But only for a while." He said. "Innocent Sin…. Innocent Sin…" Junpei thought as his earlier adventure started to piece together. Why it seemed so familiar and why he saw Minato and the others. One thing he doesn't understand though is why he suddenly dreamt about it.

"Are you okay?" Chidori asked for the nth time while staring at the dazed Junpei and Junpei snapped out of his trance finally. He looks at his girlfriend seriously and speaks up.

"I need to go back to Iwatodai."

"Then let's go back to Iwatodai." The redhead Lolita responded and Junpei immediately shook his head.

"I have to go alone. I'll come back for you." Junpei said and before Chidori could protest, Junpei stood up and left the room.

* * *

><p>Mitsuru stepped out of the bathroom clad in towel, a habit she gained in the dorm, when her phone started ringing.<p>

"Mitsuru speaking." She answered without looking at the ID while waiting for the caller to speak.

"Hey senpai, I have a favor to ask." She heard Junpei's serious voice on the other end.

"What is it Iori?" She asked.

"I need to borrow some money from you." Junpei said.

"Of course, how much money do you need?" The redhead asked.

"Enough to get me a ticket back to Iwatodai." Junpei said flat out. The Kirijo head raised her eyebrow and waited for a while before speaking again.

"It's not yet safe for you and Chidori to return to Iwatodai, Iori." She said.

"Not me and Chidori. _Just_ me. I'm leaving her behind." Junpei explained.

"What do you mean?" Mitsuru asked then she hears Junpei sigh.

"There's something I need to check senpai. Something _very_ important." He explained.

"What's so important that you're leaving Chidori behind?" The redhead asked again, very curious.

"I…" Junpei paused and sighed again. "I'm honestly not sure. All I know is that I really need to go back to Iwatodai." He continued.

"I'll think about it." Mitsuru replied.

"Senpai, please." She heard Junpei beg and she sighed.

"Alright. I'll arrange for your flight and call you back." She replied. Junpei thanks her and hangs up. As Mitsuru placed her phone down on the side table, she hears a knock on her door. Forgetting that she was only wearing her towel, she heads to the door and opens it.

* * *

><p>Max immediately turns red as he sees the redhead clad in towel. Mitsuru looked at him confused but soon realizes why the man turned red.<p>

"Oh. Forgive me. Please come in and give me just a few minutes to dress up." The redhead said, quickly turning and heading for the bathroom.

As soon as Mitsuru was in the bathroom, Max's phone rings. He answers it and after listening to the caller for a while, he hangs up. He looks at the bathroom door and figuring that Mitsuru would take a while, he stands up. He starts looking around the room and spots Mitsuru's phone. He looks one more time at the bathroom door and when he was sure that there were no signs that the occupant of the room was coming out soon, he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and used it to hold the phone and started tinkering with it. After a while, he hears the bathroom door clicking, immediately puts the phone back on the table and scrambles back to the couch.

"I'm sorry for taking long." Mitsuru apologized as she stepped out of the bathroom, now fully clothed.

"No, please don't apologize, Ms. Kirijo. It is you who deserves an apology for me coming here without prior notice and for not contacting you the past few days. Things have been… very busy at the office." Max politely said as he watched the Kirijo head pick up her phone.

"So what brings you here?" Mitsuru asked while looking at her phone.

"Well, I just wanted to check on you and let you know that my boss will meet you in two days." Max said as he stood up from the couch.

"I see. Is there anything else?" Mitsuru asked and Max shook his head.

"That would be all. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to the office." the man said heading for the door.

"Thank you for dropping by." The redhead said politely as she closed the door after the man left. Max walked to the elevator and waited for it to open while pulling his phone out then sighs.

"It's ready." He said just as the elevator shaft opened and he hung up.

* * *

><p>"So…" Akihiko started while Ken looked at him. "About the doll you were asking about earlier. He was the one who took it." He said awkwardly not really looking at Ken as he spoke.<p>

"You mean Masaki-san?" Ken asked and Akihiko nodded. Ken wanted to ask something else when his phone started to ring. He stood up and looked at the ID, it was Yukari. Ken took a quick glance at the older boy then turned around to answer the call.

"Hello Ken?" he heard Yukari say. "Did you find him?" she asked.

"Yeah…" Ken responded rather dejectedly.

"What's wrong?" Yukari asked. Ken looked back at Akihiko and left the room.

"He's lost his memories." Ken explained and he heard nothing on the other end of the line. "Yukari-san, are you there?" Ken asked after a while.

"Huh? What? Oh, sorry, yeah I'm here. What do you mean he lost his memories?" Yukari finally answered.

"He doesn't remember anything at all. Not you, not me, not Minako-san, Mitsuru-san, Aragaki-san and not even Caesar." Ken explained.

"Have you talked to the doctor tending to him yet?" he heard Yukari ask.

"Yes, the doctor said head trauma caused his memory loss." Ken said plainly.

"Isn't there any way to get his memories back?" Yukari asked. "The doctor said all we can do is wait." Ken said sadly. Yukari was speechless for a while then Ken hears her sigh.

"I'm coming over." She says and immediately hangs up. Ken goes back inside the room where the boxer was seating on his bed quietly. He sits back down on his chair then looks at Akihiko when the boxer opened his mouth.

"Do I really have a sister?" He asks the younger boy and Ken nodded. "Then why isn't she here? What about my parents? Or any of my other relatives?" He asked, question after question. Ken frowned at his questions. He didn't know the right thing to say and there was no easy way to tell Akihiko the truth. Akihiko looked at Ken in anticipation, waiting for the young boy to answer.

"Y-y-you're an orphan Sanada-san. You and Miki-san." Ken started and Akihiko frowned.

"So my sister's name is Miki?" He asks and Ken nods.

"But she's dead too." Ken looks away. Akihiko's frown became more apparent after this. "You have no other relatives either." Ken explained.

"So I'm all alone…"The boxer said dejectedly while Ken looked him straight in the eyes while shaking his head.

"You're not alone Sanada-san. I'm here. And you have Minako-san too. And Aragaki-san, Mitsuru-san, Minato-san Yukari-san, Fuuka-san, Junpei-san, Aigis-san and even Koromaru-san. You have us." The young boy said trying to cheer up the champion boxer who started to look confused.

"Who are they? I really don't remember anything…" Akihiko said, looking down.

"Minako-san is your girlfriend and you love her so much. You care about her a lot. She means the entire world to you." Ken said as he moved his chair closer to the bed.

"Then why isn't she here?" Akihiko asked. "She…. She…." Ken started but didn't know how to explain the situation to the amnesiac Akihiko.

"She was here but she had to leave for a while, that's why she sent me." The young boy managed to say, without looking at Akihiko.

"What is she like?" Akihiko asked, less confused and more curious.

"Very beautiful. Soft and silky, shoulder length hair that she always tied up in a ponytail and she wore clips on her bangs too. She had a pair of bright crimson eyes. She had a very sweet and caring smile. She had pale skin and she's slim, average height and very sporty. She always wore skirts and she loved the color orange and red. She's very cheerful and she's a good leader and she's an incredible cook and, and…." Ken said continuously and brightly. All the description Ken mentioned felt very overwhelming to Akihiko and yet, something inside of him felt… Warm. Like he was happy and somehow he feels as if something in him did remember the girl and he couldn't help but smile.

"Sanada-san?" Ken called out looking at the slightly smiling Akihiko.

"Oh, sorry. I was just thinking of something." Akihiko said.

"Do you remember anything?" Ken asked, curious and hopeful.

"Honestly, I don't know." Akihiko said. "Can you tell me something about the others you mentioned too?" The boxer asked and Ken smiled nodding.

"Aragaki-san's been your friend for the longest time. He lived in the same orphanage as you and Miki-san. He's your best friend. He's strong and cool. He's very tall and he's the best cook I know. He has brown hair and brown eyes and he always has a beanie on and he's wearing a red peat coat and he rarely ever goes to school. He's a bit rude and he's foul mouthed a lot of times and he's impatient but he's funny too. He's very caring and sensitive. He's a great person and he's my idol just like you. A lot of people think he's scary but he's a very nice person too. And, and…" Ken kept talking again all the while, somehow, Akihiko felt as if something in him remembers the man being described and he couldn't help but smile again. He had the same feeling over for each person Ken described.

It took about an hour or more for Ken to finish describing each member of their "family" and all the while, Akihiko would smile from time to time while Ken would ask him repeatedly if he remembers anything to which he sadly replies he doesn't. Ken just kept going in the hopes that in the middle of him telling Akihiko stories, the boxer would remember even a little.

* * *

><p>Yukari walked around the hallways of the hospital around 2pm. She brought with her some snacks figuring Ken and Akihiko may be hungry. Along the way, she notices a pale man, a bit older than her, sitting on a bench outside, coughing. He wore a blue and white striped collared shirt and black pants. Yukari couldn't just walk by him seeing as he was coughing horribly.<p>

"Excuse me, are you alright?" Yukari asked as she slowly approached the man who kept coughing.

"Will you stay with me for a while?" The man asked in between coughs and Yukari set her bag on the side as she sat down on the bench. After a while, the man finally stopped coughing.

"Thank you for staying with me." The boy said.

"Don't worry about it. Are you okay now?" Yukari asks to which the boy nods. "I'm Yukari Takeba." She introduces herself with a smile.

"So you're Yukari Takeba. I've heard about you before." The pale man said while Yukari looks at him confused. "Minato and Minako talked about you and your other friends. I'm Akinari Kamiki." He explained while Yukari continued to look at him confused. Akinari stares at Yukari for a while then laughs. Before Yukari could say anything more, a woman in her late thirties comes by.

"There you are Akinari, come on, let's bring you back to your room." She says and Akinari nods as he stands up.

"It's very nice to meet you, Yukari. Well, goodbye." He tells Yukari with a smile and walks with the woman. As Yukari stands up from the bench she sees two familiar faces walking by looking at her angrily. It was Fuuka's parents.

"What are you doing here? Didn't we tell you to stay away from our daughter?" Fuuka's father angrily asked.

"If you don't leave now, we will call security and have you kicked out of this hospital." Fuuka's mother said this time.

"I'm not here to visit your daughter. There's something else I have to take care of." Yukari tried to say as calmly as she could.

"What? Finish what you started and kill our daughter?" Fuuka's mother butted in angrily.

"What? How dare you accuse me of that! Fuuka is my friend so there's no way I could ever hurt her." Yukari said, aggravated.

"No way you could hurt her? If that's true then she wouldn't be here. You and all those hooligans in that dorm tried to kill her!" Fuuka's angry mother shouted. She was about to slap Yukari when a man went in between them.

"Now ma'am. This is not a place for fighting or shouting. You're disturbing the patients." The man says as he let go of Mrs. Yamagishi's hand. The Yamagishi couple gives the man and Yukari an annoyed look as they started to walk away. Yukari looks at the tall man and the man smiles at her.

"Are you alright miss?" He asks and Yukari nods while giving the man a good look. He was tall with brown hair and small brown eyes. His nose was narrow just like his lips were. He seemed to be in his mid-thirties and was about 2 inches taller than Shinjiro. He seemed familiar to Yukari yet she can't put her finger on it.

"Thank you." Yukari says. The man then leans toward Yukari and whispers something in her ear.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go now. I've already made my passenger wait for almost an hour." The man says as he straightens up and walks away. Yukari looks around her surroundings as the man left then shook her head and headed for the elevator.

* * *

><p>Akira Takeyama was very, <em>very <em>pissed off as he went around the police station for the nth time trying to find Kurosawa. The detective has invited Ken Amada, one of the occupants of the dorm where Fuuka Yamagishi got hurt, to his office to have a little "chat" about the incident when the damned Officer Kurosawa came into the office telling him that the chief was calling for him. When he came to the chief inspector's office, the chief screamed at him for disturbing him while he was working. The chief inspector didn't even call him. Kurosawa tricked the smart Akira Takeyama and by the time the detective came back to his office, his visitor had already left. Akira Takeyama came out of his office angrily trying to look for Kurosawa who was already off duty that time. Takeyama finally calmed down after about two hours of trying to look for Kurosawa and sat down on his chair calmly trying to think about his next move when his phone rang.

"This better be good. I'm in a horrible mood." The brown-haired detective said as he answered the phone. He leaned toward his table seemingly interested in what the person he was talking to was talking about.

"Are you sure?" Takeyama asks then waits.

"Okay. Get back here, _now_." Takeyama commands.

"One more thing, I want information on all the people who stays and stayed in that dorm." Takeyama says one more time. "Name, birthday, brief background, whereabouts, whatever information that will help with our case." Takeyama says. After a while, he hangs up the phone and stands up from his chair, looking outside the window with a smile.

* * *

><p>"Oh good, are you feeling better hee-ho?" Minato looks away from the television for a while as he realizes Theodore moved on the couch. Theodore looks at the Jack Frost doll and the rabbit doll for a while without talking.<p>

"Hee-ho?" Minato and Ryoji looked at Theodore. Theodore suddenly knelt down, his head low on the ground in front of the two dolls.

"Please forgive me. None of this would happen had I been more careful." The white haired man said sincerely. "Please forgive me. I really am sorry." Theodore apologized once more. The Jack Frost doll and the rabbit doll looked at each other then back at Theodore.

"No, no hee-ho. It wasn't your fault." Minato said.

Theodore looks up at the two and sees Ryoji's note which said, "If you really want to find someone to blame, we're all equally to blame so don't apologize." Minato looks at the words and shakes his big head.

"No, no. You're not making him feel any better." Minato tells the rabbit doll.

The rabbit doll shakes its head then writes something else on his board. It says: "I'm just being honest. We we're all careless."

"It doesn't help make him feel better. I'm trying to make him feel better hee-ho." Minato says starting to get aggravated. The rabbit doll was writing on his board when the Jack Frost doll slapped his arm that was holding the marker.

"Shut up." Minato said and stuck his tongue out. Ryoji, annoyed with Minato slapping his hand pulls Minato's tongue hard before letting it go.

"That was mean, hee-ho." Minato says then kicks Ryoji. Ryoji pushes his small body back up then picks up the marker and draws on the Jack Frost doll's face. Minato gets back at Ryoji by summoning snow balls.

"Hee-ho! I didn't know I can do that!" Minato exclaims really amused and prepares to throw the snowballs toward Ryoji.

"Now, now you two, please don't fight." Theodore says waving his hands in front of him while standing in between the two all the while Ryoji writes on his board. He wrote: "If it's a fight you want, then it's a fight you'll get." Then the rabbit doll runs behind the couch as Minato throws a snowball at him.

"Come on, please don't fight." Theodore tells them but obviously neither of the two dolls heard him. The rabbit doll throws the marker at Minato who barely dodges it. Minato sticks his tongue out then throws another snowball at Ryoji all the while giggling. Ryoji uses the couch as a shield again then throws his board at Minato.

"Now, you two, please, let's not ar—" Theodore tries to say while standing in between the battling plushies and gets hit with the board on the head and collapses to the ground. Both dolls run toward the unconscious man from opposite directions and look at each other.

"Theodore, hee-ho, Theodore." Minato called out while poking Theodore on the shoulder.

"I think you killed him." The Jack Frost doll tells his rabbit doll companion while the rabbit doll notions "I don't know".

"What are we going to do with him?" Minato asked while the rabbit doll notions he doesn't know again.

"Yukari's going to kill both of us, you know that right?" Minato tells Ryoji while looking at him while Ryoji nods in agreement as they try to wake Theodore up.

* * *

><p>"Do you remember anything now Sanada-san?" Ken asked but Akihiko shook his head as the door opens. The two boys turn to the door to see who it was. Akihiko stares at the girl for a while. The girl had short hair and wore a pink blouse and jeans. After a few seconds, he looks at Ken.<p>

"She's Yukari-san." Ken said.

"I see." Akihiko responds while sitting calmly on the bed.

"How are you feeling senpai?" Yukari asked casually. She felt a bit awkward because Akihiko obviously doesn't remember her but tries her best anyway to act normal.

"I guess I'm alright." The boxer responds. "I'm sorry I don't remember you." He says while frowning a little.

"N-no." Yukari quickly answers while waving her hands frantically. "Don't feel sorry senpai. It's not your fault and I'm sure things will get better. Right Ken?" She continues then looks at Ken.

"Yeah, Yukari-san's right." Ken said with a bright, hopeful smile.

"By the way, I figured you might be hungry so I brought food for you." Yukari said as she pulls out three boxed lunches from the bag she had.

"Here's for you Ken-kun." Yukari says as she gives Ken one of the boxed lunches. "And here's for you senpai, it's beef bowl." She continued with a smile. Ken thanks Yukari and gives her an earnest smile as he takes the food from her. Akihiko gives her a small smile and takes the other boxed lunch as well and opens it.

"This looks delicious." Akihiko says as he looks at the food.

"Of course it is." Ken said brightly. "It's your favorite food." He continued.

"That's right." Yukari says with a smile. "Well, let's eat." She says and the three of them start eating quietly. "By the way Ken, where's Koromaru?" Yukari asked just as the young boy was about to put a spoonful of rice on his mouth and put the spoon back down.

"Oh no! I completely forgot about him." Ken exclaimed as he stood up and placed the food on his chair. "Yukari-san, can you please come with me for a while? There's something I need to tell you." Ken whispered to the older girl as he headed for the door. Yukari looks at the boxer who was busy enjoying his beef bowl to notice what was going on around him and puts down her food and follows Ken. As the two stepped out of the room, Ken looks around before speaking.

"On my way here, Detective Takeyama approached me and invited me to the police station. He's really aggressive and he refuses to believe that it was an accident. I don't even know if I would be here now if Officer Kurosawa didn't call him." Ken said softly. "Officer Kurosawa also told me that we should be careful because he's really sharp." He continued.

"Detective Takeyama?" Yukari thought for a while.

"The detective who is investigating Fuuka-san's injury" Ken explains.

"That's not good." Yukari replied. "And if he's really that good, then he's probably aware of senpai by now." She continues while Ken nods. Yukari thinks for a while and remembers what the man earlier told her: "You need to be more careful miss, someone's been following you."

"Listen Ken, be aware of your surroundings at all times." Yukari said while Ken looks at her in confusion. "Someone was following me earlier." She continued. "It might be Detective Takeyama or someone who works for him." She finished.

"I see. What are we going to tell them if they question us again?" Ken asked.

"I don't know yet. Just give me some time to think." Yukari replied while Ken nodded.

"Well, I'm going to pick up Koromaru-san now." Ken says as he leaves the hospital while Yukari went back inside the room.

* * *

><p>Minako slowly opens her eyes and looks around her surroundings.<p>

"Where am I?" She asks herself quietly as she sits up. Soon, she runs around the room trying to find a way out. "Where am I again? Why does this keep happening to me?" The Pyro Jack doll asks out loud while running around the room.

"I need to get out of here. I need to get back to Aki." She says as she finally calms down and looked around the room to find a way to get out of the place. She sees a closed window on one side of the room and a chair across it. "Maybe I can get out through the window." Minako thought and runs toward the chair and tries to push it toward the window. The screeching sound the chair made as the Pyro Jack doll pushed the chair towards the window was loud enough for Minako not to notice that someone has entered the room.

"This is so heavy." Minako said as she kept pushing the chair.

"Want me to help you with that?" A male voice asked which catches Minako's attention. Minako froze as the man approached her. It was the driver who took them to the hospital last night. The man smiled at the Pyro Jack doll as he sits down near her.

"Thank you for confirming that I haven't gone insane." He said with a smile.

"Last night, I saw you move on my rearview mirror." He started while Minako didn't move an inch. "So I knew anytime soon you would move again. I didn't expect that you'd speak though." He continued.

"My name is Masaharu Masaki. Do you have a name?" Masaharu looks at Minako who still doesn't move. "Relax, I won't hurt you. If I have plans like that, I would have done it already while you were asleep." Masaharu says and notices the Pyro Jack doll relaxing a bit.

"So what's your name?" He asked with a smile.

"Minako, Minako Arisato." Minako finally answered.

"I see. You must be worried about your friend, Akihiko Sanada." Masaharu said while Minako turns to him. "The doctor said he lost his memories after collapsing." Masaharu explained.

"But he's going to get his memories back soon right?" Minako asks, feeling even more comfortable around Masaharu.

"Let's hope so." Masaharu replied. "You must be hungry." He said and the Pyro Jack doll nodded.

"Come on then." Masaharu said as he stood up while Minako followed him to the kitchen.

"What do you want to eat?" He asks Minako.

"Peppers and coal." The Pyro Jack doll responded without second thoughts.

"It's a good thing I have a barbecue then." Masaharu said with a smile as he brings out a pack of peppers and gives it to Minako. "I'll go get the coal outside. Then perhaps we could talk." Masaharu said as he left while Minako ate quietly.

* * *

><p>"Akihiko-senpai…" Yukari started while looking at her senior who was quietly eating.<p>

"Senpai?" she calls out again and Akihiko snaps out of his daze.

"I'm sorry, what is it?" He asked as he looks at the brunette.

"Where did you put the doll?" Yukari asked.

"W-what doll are you talking about?" Akihiko asked back.

"Well last night you had a doll with you. You must still have it." Yukari replied.

"Is it the same doll Ken asked me about earlier?" Akihiko asked again while Yukari nods.

"Yes, it's the doll with blue pointed cap and blue cape. It has a pumpkin head and its holding a lantern, I think." Yukari explained.

"I remember seeing that doll when I first woke up." Akihiko started while Yukari waited for him to continue. "I don't think I'll be able to forget something like that weird thing. It jumped on me and talked to me when I woke up. Come to think of it, it seems to know me." The boxer continued.

"Geez, for a guy with amnesia he sure remembers _everything_ that happened after he woke up." Yukari thought.

"Y-yukari-san?" Akihiko calls out to Yukari who was busy thinking.

"Poor Minako… She must be really upset that Akihiko-senpai doesn't remember her." Yukari continued to think to herself.

"Yukari-san?" Akihiko called out again while Yukari snaps out of her own thoughts.

"Huh? What?" She asks while Akihiko looked at her, confused.

"Are you okay Yukari-san?" the white haired boxer asked.

"Y-yukari-san?" Yukari asks in surprise before continuing, "Senpai, you don't have to call me Yukari-san. Actually, you call me Takeba more often so I'm more comfortable if you'd call me Takeba or Yukari." Akihiko looks at Yukari, still in confusion then frowns a little.

"Hey, come on senpai. You shouldn't frown. You'll get old really fast if you frown a lot. Besides, you look your best when you smile." Yukari tells the boxer, quickly winks and giggles while Akihiko looks at her momentarily confused then laughs.

Yukari smiles as she watches the amnesiac Akihiko laugh heartily. After a while, when the boxer finally stopped laughing, "So senpai, where _is_ the doll?"

"It scared me a little when I saw it so Masaharu-san took it with him." The boxer responded.

"Masaharu-san?" Yukari looks at Akihiko while he nodded.

"I think he's the man who took me here and helped me." The boxer explained.

"I see." Yukari said while hoping that Minako was alright.

* * *

><p>Ken takes a deep breath as he grabs the doorknob trying to prepare himself with how Koromaru might look like when he sees the white dog. After a few seconds, he enters the clinic and talks to a woman holding a clipboard.<p>

"Excuse me ma'am. I'm here to pick up our dog. He's a white dog with red eyes. He was brought in here last night?" the boy tells the lady.

"Koromaru, right?" She responded with a smile and Ken nodded. "Okay, please wait right here." The lady flashes Ken another smile before leaving the boy who sits on the couch.

Ken sighed again while hoping that Koromaru wouldn't look as bad as he imagined when he comes out. As he waited for the lady to come back, his mind wandered off to their biggest problem right now: Detective Akira Takeyama. Ken knew very well that he can't blame the detective for investigating them. He was only doing his job but still Ken felt that it was wrong. He pulls out his phone and calls Shinjiro. After a few rings, Ken doesn't get an answer and finally gives up.

"Why won't you answer Aragaki-san?" Ken asked weakly while looking at his phone then scrolls to another name on his phone. Ken dials the number and waits as it rings.

"Hello Mitsuru-san?" He said after a few rings.

"Hello Ken, is something the matter?" The redhead replied in a formal manner.

"W-well…" Ken purses his lips as he tries to speak up when he feels someone tugging on his leg. Ken looks down to see a bandaged Koromaru looking at him with his bright red eyes.

"S-sorry Mitsuru-san, it's nothing important. I'm sorry to have disturbed you." Ken said and quickly hangs up then he sighs.

"I don't even know why I called her." Ken said quietly as he patted the dog's head while the lady with the clipboard approaches them.

"We cemented one of his front legs since it's broken and bandaged up all his wounds but he should be able to walk. He's a really strong dog so he's going to be okay." The lady said with a bright smile which grew bigger when the young boy smiled gladly.

"Thank you for looking after him." Ken bowed his head and stood up, preparing to leave.

"Oh, wait. I need you to sign this." The lady said giving the clipboard and a pen to Ken who signs it. "Thank you and take care." She said as the two left.

* * *

><p>As soon as the duo was out, Ken kneels down and rubs Koromaru's bandaged fur while looking at his cemented front leg.<p>

"I'm really sorry that you got hurt Koromaru-san." The young brunette tells the dog knowing that it could understand him. Koromaru whines in response trying to tell the human that it wasn't his fault and that he's alright. Ken stood up and sighed while looking around. He suddenly remembered what Yukari told him earlier and was hoping that nobody was following him. Ken sighed again then frowns just as they started walking.

"Things got so messy when Minako-san and Minato-san came back. Maybe they shouldn't come back anymore. Things were okay already then they had to return." Ken said pursing his lips while Koromaru tugs his leg again, whining. The young boy looks at the white dog while trying to hold back tears then shook his head.

"I'm sorry Koromaru-san. I know I shouldn't blame Minako-san and Minato-san. It's not their fault. We all want them to come back to us too. Right Koromaru-san?" Ken looks at the dog again with a smile on his face while the dog barked happily.

"Let's go home." Ken said as the two of them start walking.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, back at the police station, Akira Takeyama sat impatiently flipping his phone open almost every 5 seconds to check for new messages from the men he sent to follow around the suspicious occupants of the dorm.<p>

He stood up from his chair and comes out of his office to look around at the other police and detectives working on their desks. There were quite a number of them feeling uncomfortable being at the presence of the very intimidating man.

Takeyama, a senior detective of the Iwatodai Police Department in his mid-thirties, is known as one of the best. He is very resilient, intelligent and more importantly, great at what he does. He was also very intimidating among other qualities, even for his fellow detectives. He was respectable because of his skills and it was always an honor to work with him who is of great caliber.

But this didn't necessarily mean they had to like him. A thought which came to very few members of the police department particularly, a detective, as good as he was called Jinn. They were both great with what they do but they rarely ever agreed on anything and always ended up bickering until Jinn decided to quit the force.

"You…" He called out to the nearest officer who almost dropped his coffee.

"Y-yes sir?" The young police officer, tall and thin, answered in a shaky, nervous voice.

"You're new here aren't you?" Takeyama asked and the young man nods his head nervously. "Your name." Takeyama continued, more demanding for it than asking.

"K-kazuki. Reiji Kazuki." He young man answers quickly.

"Well Kazuki, do you know Officer Masato Aikawa?" The detective asks while the man shakes his head. "One of my men. Red spikey hair, about the same height as you, blue round eyes, round face, pale with a distinctive scar on his left arm. That's him. When he gets here, tell him to go straight into my office as soon as he returns. I don't care if he's hungry, thirsty, needs to pee. I don't even care if he's dying. Just go straight into my office. Understood?" The detective asked looking sharply at the younger officer who almost snaps his neck broken after nodding so fast.

Seeing the officer nod, Takeyama returns to his office and closes the door behind him. Kazuki sighed in relief and gently rubbed his hand holding the coffee cup when said redhead Takeyama was looking for came in the office heading for the water dispenser.

"E-excuse me." Kazuki called out nervously. The redhead, Aikawa, looks at him sternly, one hand reaching for a cup beside the dispenser and the other holding a folder. Kazuki stepped back a little and gulped. "A-are you O-office Aikawa?" He asked.

"What's it to you kid?" The redhead asks.

"D-detective Takeyama said t-that you have to go straight to his office when y-you get here." The younger man answered with a shaky voice. Masato sighs as he puts the cup back and walks towards Takeyama's office. He stops at the door and looks at the rookie.

"Is that a defect or are you nervous?" He asked but the brunette rookie didn't answer. Aikawa sighed seeing that the rookie wouldn't answer.

"If you're jumpy all the time, you might be in the wrong place." He paused and looks Kazuki in the eye. "You need to learn how to act more calmly. Detective Takeyama's not the only intimidating man in this place." Aikawa continued with a smirk and enters Takeyama's office.

* * *

><p>"Well it's about time you got here." Takeyama told the redhead as he entered the office and sat on one of the chairs across Takeyama's.<p>

"It wasn't easy trying to get all these files you wanted boss." Aikawa replied as he handed Takeyama the folder.

"Is everything in here?" Takeyama asked as he flips through the files.

"Yeah." Aikawa answered. "Now, can I go have something to drink? My throat's been dry for at least an hour now." He asks.

"Not yet. Tell me what you know so far. I'm sure you've gone through these." The older man looks straight in the eyes of the redhead who sighs.

"According to those files, Yukari Takeba, Ken Amada and Fuuka Yamagishi _do_ occupy that dorm together with that white dog, Koromaru." He started.

"We already know that Aikawa." Takeyama said impatiently as he lights a cigarette while Aikawa rolled his eyes.

"What they didn't mention is that there are other occupants aside from them. Or there are supposed to be more of them. Junpei Iori, Shinjiro Aragaki and someone named Aigis." He continued while the older man stared at him.

"Last name of that Aigis person." He ordered.

"That's another thing. There is no registered last name for Aigis." Aikawa responds and Takeyama flips through the papers in the folder again obviously looking for the file about the said person.

"Where are they?" the brunette detective asked.

"Well, the Iori kid is supposed to be on vacation but there are no records of Aragaki or Aigis going anywhere so I'm supposing that they should be at that dorm." Aikawa answered.

"Vacation where?" The brunette asks to which Aikawa responds, "India."

"How well off is he?" Takeyama asked next.

"Not enough to afford a vacation in India." Was the response he received.

"And he's been there almost two months now? Something's not right with that." Takeyama started as he kept looking through the files.

"Well, Mitsuru Kirijo used to stay in the same dorm. Do you think it's possible that they are extorting money from her? That is the only possible explanation as to where the Iori kid got the money to go to India." Aikawa suggested.

"Quite a good observation, see if you can contact anybody from the Kirijo group. Maybe they have information we'd like." Takeyama replied.

"By the way, there was another man in that dorm last night. He's around his 20's. Blue uniform of some sort, pale skin, white hair and strange gold eyes. He doesn't seem to be in here." He continued.

"Well those are and were the only occupants of the dorm. I triple checked before I came back here." Aikawa pointed out.

"Minato and Minako Arisato…" Takeyama read.

"Yeah, they died two months ago." The redhead officer replied.

"At the same time?" Takeyama asks to which the redhead nods.

"How?" He asks again.

"Nothing was stated in their records, even at the hospital where they were taken." Aikawa answered.

"Who took them to the hospital?" The curious detective asked.

"Take a pick." Aikawa said.

"All of them." Takeyama replied as he closed the folder and stood up. "See if you can find any more information about them. Maybe you should go visit their dorm." He continued as he headed for the door.

"And you?" Aikawa asked as he stood up as well.

"It's time to visit that Sanada kid." Takeyama replied and left with Aikawa behind him.

* * *

><p>"So tell me how this happened." The middle aged brunette asked the obviously hungry Pyro Jack doll.<p>

"How what happened?" Minako asks looking at him.

"You're a doll, a toy. You're not supposed to be alive." Masaharu pointed out leaning closer to the doll to observe it more while the Pyro Jack doll shook its head.

"No, no. I'm not a doll. I'm a human stuck inside this doll." She explained.

"So you're a spirit. I know a monk who can help you move on." Masaharu answered in a kind tone and Minako shook her head vigorously.

"I'm not trying to move on. I'm trying to get back." The girl in the Pyro Jack doll said.

"But you can't do that if you're dead." Masaharu points out while the Pyro Jack doll seemed to get aggravated.

"I'm not dead! I'm just not in my body." The now aggravated Pyro Jack doll insisted. Looking at her, the brunette man laughs heartily while Minako looks at him in confusion. When his laughing finally settled, Masaharu returned his focus on Minako.

"I'm sorry. You just looked really funny when you were getting aggravated. But in a good way." Masaharu explained while the Pyro Jack doll pouted and stuck its tongue out.

"So tell me, how did you get separated from your body?" Masaharu asks in a more serious but still gentle tone.

"You wouldn't believe me even if I told you." Minako said without looking at Masaharu with her gloved hands folded.

"I'm talking to a Pyro Jack doll that talks, breathes, moves and eats. So try me." He said as he pulled his chair closer to the table.

"Okay. But it's a long story." Minako answered looking at the man.

"I'm going to pick up my next passenger at 8pm and its only 4. So I have time to spare." He said. Minako then starts telling their story while the kind man listened to it patiently.

* * *

><p>"Excuse me miss, my friend was brought in here yesterday. I'd like to know which room she's staying in. Her name's Fuuka Yamagishi." Takeyama heard a blond, tan girl ask the receptionist as he entered the hospital.<p>

"She's staying at 611." The receptionist answered after checking the logbook.

"Thank you." The girl said and turned around to head for the elevator. Takeyama followed her.

"Lucky me." Takeyama thought as he noticed only the two of them boarding the elevator.

"I heard you're a friend of Miss Fuuka Yamagishi." He started while the girl looked at him, her eyebrow raised. "I'm detective Akira Takeyama, the detective assigned to her case." The older man said in a firm voice.

"What case? I thought what happened to Fuuka was an accident?" The blond asked.

"Your name first, miss." Takeyama said, clearly satisfied with the way the girl reacted to his introduction.

"Natsuki Moriyama." The young blond said, clearly annoyed. "Well?" She looked at the detective impatiently.

"Those kids at the dorm said it was an accident but my instincts tell me that they were lying." Takeyama said as the elevator door opened. Natsuki got off first, looking back at Takeyama.

"Those people at the dorm may be weird, but I don't think they'd do anything to harm Fuuka. They're friends." She said and walked towards Fuuka's room as Takeyama pressed G on the elevator.

* * *

><p>"Detective Akira Takeyama. I need Akihiko Sanada's room number." Takeyama said to the receptionist showing his badge while the woman rolled her eyes.<p>

"407." She said as the detective walked off to the elevator.

* * *

><p>As Ken and Koromaru was a block away from the dorm, Koromaru suddenly stopped and whimpered while looking at Ken.<p>

"What's wrong boy?" Ken asked the dog. The white dog whimpered once more and then looked straight ahead. Ken looked the same direction. Across the dorm, a black car pulled over and a redhead man, wearing a black suit, stepped out. He had a gun on his side and a badge pinned on his suit.

"A cop?" Ken thought while Koromaru once again whimpered.

"Shhhhh… Come on boy." Ken said as he slowly and quietly ran towards the dorm followed by Koromaru. The duo quickly hid behind a tree near the front door as the man walked on the steps of the front entrance. He was about to knock on the door but suddenly put his hand back down. He looked around almost seeing Ken and Koromaru hadn't they turned a little then gently leaned forward, his ear on the door.

"I think he heard something inside. What are we gonna do?" Ken asked turning to the dog, clearly worried.

Aikawa was about to knock on the door when he heard someone talking inside the dorm. He heard a shrilly small voice.

"Wake up hee-ho." The voice said then squeaking sounds.

"I didn't kill him, hee-ho." He heard it say after a while then more squeaking sounds.

"I don't know either. Come on hee-ho, wake up." The shrilly voice said once more and then more squeaking sounds. Aikawa then tried to peek inside through the hole but couldn't see anything except for a couch.

"Damn couch." He thought. He thought it was quite strange how the shrilly voice seemed to be talking to someone and yet he didn't hear anybody else talking from the inside.

"That voice seems to be too small to be that of a teenager." Aikawa thought. "Kids?" His thoughts continued to wonder.

He tried to take a peek inside again and saw a telephone lying on a table beside the couch then he grinned. He straightened once more and went back to his car. He took his phone from his pocket then a piece of paper with a number written on it from his compartment and walked back towards the dorm.

* * *

><p>"What is he doing?" Ken thought while Koromaru looked at him just as confused. They noticed the man looking at a piece of paper for a while and dial his phone. The man peeked through the door's keyhole once more as he placed his phone on his ear.<p>

Ken and Koromaru both looked on still unaware of what the man was trying to do. All of a sudden the man dropped his phone on the ground, wide eyed and jolted straight up almost falling off the stairs which also startled the duo behind the tree. The look on his face seemed like a mixture of shock and fear. He scrambled to pick up his phone and quickly went down the stairs to his car.

"He saw something! He saw something!" Ken thought, panicking and accidently tripped towards the side of the road. The man's neck almost snapped when he turned around to the direction of the tree when he heard a thump.

"Ah… Ha-haha-ha-ha…" Ken laughed awkwardly while the injured white dog approached him. The man took a deep breath and though still obviously terrified, approached Ken.

"Are you alright kid?" He asked. His voice a bit shaky and Ken nods trying to look calm. "Y-you live in that dorm right?" The redhead asked.

"Yeah. Why?" Ken replied more calmly as he stood up.

"Nothing." The redhead quickly responded and headed for his car, almost running and sped off.

* * *

><p>Ken sighed in relief seeing the black car disappear from his view. He then took his keys out and opened the front door. The two entered the dorm to find the lounge in chaos with the two dolls arguing and Theodore lying on the ground unconscious.<p>

"What happened here?" Ken asked as he ran towards the unconscious Theodore but the two dolls who were still busy arguing clearly didn't hear him.

"Stop it." Ken ordered but the two clearly had no intentions of stopping.

That was until Koromaru took the rabbit doll and chewed on it lightly before spitting it out. Ryoji vigorously shook his bunny arms, clearly not happy with what the white dog just did but Koromaru ignored him. Then the white dog pounced at the Jack Frost doll and kept his paws over its body to keep him down as Minato tried to shake his way out of Koromaru's paws.

"Thanks Koromaru-san." Ken said and the dog's tail wagged happily. "Now, what happened here?" Ken asked the two dolls but neither spoke. Ken folded his arms looking at Minato and Ryoji alternately.

"We were fighting." Minato finally started after a while and Ken stared at him clearly waiting for the Jack Frost doll to continue.

"Theodore was trying to stop us and we accidentally hit him." Minato continued while Ryoji raised his board. "It's his fault." It said but the Jack Frost doll quickly turned the blame on the rabbit doll and the two started arguing again.

"ENOUGH!" Ken shouted which made the other occupants of the dorm freeze in surprise. "Thank you. Now, you two clean the mess you made." Ken continued as he looked around the messy lounge.

"What about you hee-ho? And Koromaru?" Minato asked as he giggled a little.

"I have to tend to Theodore-san and Koromaru-san needs to rest. So clean up." Ken said in a firm, commanding voice as he headed for the kitchen to get some ice. Koromaru, trying to be helpful went to the kitchen as well to grab a broom, a dustpan and a rag which he gave to the dolls.

"Thanks Koromaru hee-ho." Minato said as he and Ryoji started cleaning.

"Ken hee-ho, someone called just before you got back by the way." He continued.

"W-who answered it? And who was it?" Ken asked in a nervous tone.

"Me." The Jack Frost doll said then paused for a while, thinking. "I don't know who it was. He hung up when I answered hee-ho." He continued in an extremely sweet and innocent tone followed by a giggle. Ken froze at his realization.

* * *

><p>Junpei massages his sore right arm gently as he sat in the lounge waiting for Mitsuru's call. He was extremely thankful that the redhead agreed to let him come back to Iwatodai. After he woke up from his "dream adventure", he somehow had an urge to return to Iwatodai. Like there was something there that he needed to come back to. Deep in thought trying to figure out why, he doesn't notice his girlfriend come out of their hotel room and approach him.<p>

"Junpei." She calls in a monotone from behind him. But he doesn't answer. She calls him again but he still doesn't answer. For a third time, Chidori calls on Junpei while tapping his shoulder lightly. The goateed boy turns around from his chair to look at the person who tapped him on the shoulder and saw a very unhappy Lolita girl.

"Take me with you." The unhappy redhead said.

"I can't." Junpei replied.

"Why not?" Chidori asked, still in a monotone.

"Because it's dangerous for you to come back there." Junpei explained.

"Then stay here. With me." Chidori responds in an unusually pleading tone. Junpei sighed. He stood up from the chair and puts his hands on Chidori's shoulders while looking her straight in the eyes.

"I can't Chidori. I really have to go back there right now." He started then paused for a while, hesitating. "I have a strong feeling that they need me." Junpei continued. The couple just looked at each other eye to eye for a while.

"What about me?" Chidori finally asked, her face a mixture of anger, hurt and sadness. Junpei hated the sight before him right now. He hated himself for causing Chidori to feel that way and make a face like that.

"We have to come back to Iwatodai, Junpei." He suddenly heard two voices from his mind, a male and a female voice reaching to him. It was Trismegistus. Junpei's eyes widened. It's been a while since he last heard from his persona, since their final battle.

"I need you here too." Chidori said but got no response from the boy.

"Junpei" She called out but he still didn't respond. "Junpei" She repeated and finally got the boy's attention.

"I'm sorry. I have to do this. Alone. Please understand Chidori. I'll come back for you." The black haired boy replied in a soft, pleading voice while placing a hand on one of Chidori's cheeks. Chidori takes Junpei's hand off her cheek while looking at him bitterly and walks away.

"Chidori… Please…" Junpei quietly begged. After a while, Junpei's phone started ringing. It was Mitsuru. He takes a deep breath then answers it.

* * *

><p>Even though he still couldn't remember anything, Akihiko was having fun talking with Yukari. It's been almost two hours since she came to the hospital to visit him. It was awkward talking to her at first but as time passed the young boxer felt more at ease. Similar to how he felt when Ken arrived earlier. This made the young man wish even harder to have his memories back.<p>

"Senpai?" Akihiko snapped out of his own thoughts and looked at the young brunette sitting on the chair across his bed. "Are you okay senpai?" Yukari asked.

"Y-yeah. Sorry about that. What were you saying again?" The gray haired boxer replied.

"I said it's surprising that none of your fangirls have stormed in here just to see you yet." Yukari said, a bit awkwardly.

"Fangirls?" Akihiko looks at her in confusion.

"Yeah." The brunette smiled and eased up.

"You're super famous at our school. Especially to the girls regardless of which grade they're in." She continued.

"But I guess you're biggest fan is Minako. Although I don't think she'll admit something like that." Akihiko blushed at what Yukari said then they look at each other and start laughing. Their laughter is cutoff however when they hear someone knock on the door. Yukari was about to stand up to get it when it opened. The young brunette frowned at who she saw.

* * *

><p>"Miss Takeba. I'm glad you're here." Takeyama greeted as he entered the room and passed Yukari. "Saves me the time to find you." He looks back at Yukari with a smirk that the brunette archer didn't like.<p>

"Wait for me outside. Right now, I want to talk to Mr. Sanada here." He continued while looking at Akihiko who was confused and uncomfortable but Yukari didn't even move from her chair.

"It wasn't a request. It was an order. So go outside and wait for me there." The detective said when he heard no movements made by the girl but she still didn't move.

"Unless…" He started, looking back at Yukari. "You want me to make you leave by force." He continued grimly.

Although reluctant, the brunette girl stood up from her chair and left the room. Takeyama smirked, satisfaction apparent in his face when Yukari left. He pulled the chair the girl sat on closer to Akihiko's bed making a horrible screeching sound as he did. Akihiko felt more uncomfortable with the screeching noise as the chair was dragged closer to him.

"Sorry about that. Detective Akira Takeyama." The detective introduced before sitting down.

"What can I do for you detective?" Akihiko asked in a very uncomfortable tone.

"I have questions about the incident involving the other occupant of your dorm, Miss Fuuka Yamagishi." The brunette man explained while Akihiko looked at him uneasily.

"I don't think I can help you then." He finally said.

"Oh, yes you can Mr. Sanada." The middle aged man started. "You can help by telling me where you were during the time Miss Yamagishi had her accident. You can help by telling me how you got hurt." He continued.

"I'm sorry detective but I really can't. So please leave now." Akihiko stressed out, his voice getting a bit louder.

"You're not cooperating either huh? So tell me, what did that Takeba girl bribe you with to keep your mouth shut? Huh?" Takeyama asked in a low yet stern tone.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Akihiko replied without looking at him.

"TELL ME!" Takeyama suddenly shouted which made the boxer flinch and become annoyed.

"I have nothing to tell you so you can leave now detective." He said in a loud, almost shouting voice while crutching on his blanket tightly.

"Of course you do. You know something. So you have something to tell me." Takeyama said sharply. Akihiko's eyes were shut, his eyebrows scrunched, his thumb and index finger on the area between his eyes. After a while, he opened his eyes and took a deep breath then looked sternly at the detective.

"I have nothing to tell you because I don't remember anything." Akihiko said in a low voice locking eyes with the detective.

"LIAR! Now tell me, what are you kids keeping? What did you do to Fuuka Yamagishi?" Takeyama responded almost shouting.

"I told you, I don't remember anything so you won't get anything from me!" Akihiko answered in the same tone. The two locked angry eyes with each other when the door opened. Both looked at the direction of it. It was Akihiko's doctor with Yukari behind him.

"Detective Takeyama?" The doctor asked looking at the middle aged brunette sitting on the chair who looks at back at him. "This is no place for interrogation and my patient is not in any condition for such either so I would be very grateful if you stopped harassing him and leave." He continued with a smile. His smile looked genuine and yet his voice sounded somewhat angry. "

I am not harassing him. I am merely trying to get answers from him." Takeyama pointed out but was ignored.

"My patient doesn't seem to be comfortable with your presence so please leave." The doctor said.

"I do not have time to wait for him to get better to invite him for questioning." Takeyama responded.

"If its information you want from him then you need to look elsewhere because you wouldn't get anything from him." The doctor said still with the smile on his face while Takeyama looked at him, a very, very small hint of curiosity on his face.

"He's got amnesia." The doctor continued as he approached the very stressed out and confused Akihiko. Yukari, though a bit uncomfortable and intimidated by the detective, looked directly at Takeyama who started leaving the room. He stops right next to Yukari and quickly gives her a hard look. Yukari flinched a bit but kept her eyes locked on him. The expression on his face was a mixture of anger, disappointment and embarrassment.

"Thank you." Akihiko finally said a few minutes after Takeyama left.

"Don't thank me. I'm just doing my job as your doctor. It's your friend over there you should thank." The doctor said with a smile as he checked on Akihiko. Akihiko then looks at Yukari who gives him a smile. Akihiko smiles back.

"How are you feeling now? Does your head hurt?" The doctor asked.

"I feel a dull pain in my head right now. But I think I can handle it." Akihiko said.

"That's why you need to avoid stressful situations such as earlier. If you can, don't let people like that detective affect you." The doctor explained.

"I'll send a nurse to bring you medicine for that." He continued as he left the room. The two teenagers then looked at each other and both sighed in relief.

* * *

><p>"So you're saying you and your gang are some kind of heroes that nobody knows other than yourselves?" Masaharu asked skeptically with his eyebrow raised.<p>

"I told you so. You won't believe me." Minako answered as she sat on the table, full and contented.

"Who said I didn't believe you?" The brunette man asked the Pyro Jack doll.

"You look…." Minako started then took a closer look at the man. "…doubtful?" She continued.

"You're the one who's unsure." Masaharu said with a smirk.

"So you and your friends belong to a group called S.E.E.S. that fights these things called the shadows using your personas. Did I get it right?" He asked and the doll nodded.

"And in your final battle with a gigantic shadow called the Nyx, you and your twin brother sacrificed yourselves because you were the only ones who had the ability to seal the Nyx?" Masaharu asked again.

"Uh-huh." The Pyro Jack doll replied.

"Then with the help of a shadow, you were able to get back here to find a way to seal the Nyx? While you're doing so, your bodies had to be left behind at a sealed gate on the moon?" The brunette man asked again.

"Pretty much." Minako answered.

"And you're asking me to take you back to the hospital to Akihiko who also happens to be part of S.E.E.S.?" He asked once more and the doll quickly nodded. Masaharu leans back on his chair as he sighed while looking at the doll.

"You know that he doesn't remember anything, right?" He asks and she nods. "And you _do_ remember how he reacted when you tried to talk to him right?" He asks again with emphasis while Minako reluctantly nodded her head.

"As much as I'd like to help you Minako, I can't take you there right now. It's just too dangerous. I'm sorry." He explained. Minako was obviously disappointed.

"Asking me to bring you there is like asking me to hang myself." He tried to explain.

"But I really need to go there. I need to go to Akihiko. See this?" Minako said as she showed the older man a necklace she was wearing.

"Yeah, it's a mighty fancy necklace you got there." He responded.

"It's from Aki. He gave it to me. Maybe if I showed it to him, he'd remember. No, not maybe. I'm sure he'd remember." Minako sounded desperate while Masaharu looked at her bitterly.

"Please Masaharu-san…" Minako begged while Masaharu looked at her without answering when he suddenly got an idea.

"When you told me about your story, you mentioned you have a friend called Ken right?" He asked while Minako nodded.

"Why?" She asked.

"I was thinking, maybe we could call him." Masaharu suggested.

"But I don't remember his number and as you can see, I can't carry any phones." Minako explained. "What about Aki? I memorized his number." The Pyro Jack doll suggested while Masaharu thought.

"No, I don't think a person with amnesia would answer his phone, much more if the caller's unknown." He answered then went to a desk with a pile of books and took one, a directory.

"Hold on." Masaharu said as he looked through the directory then dialed a number.

* * *

><p>"Thank you." Akihiko said after a nurse gave him medicine for his headache.<p>

"You're welcome Mr. Sanada, now your dinner will be sent here after 1 hour or so." The kind nurse answered with a smile as she prepares to leave the room.

"Miss, visiting hours will be over soon." She continued while looking at Yukari.

"I know, thanks." Yukari replied while the nurse nodded and left.

"Are you feeling any better now senpai?" Yukari asked while looking at the young boxer.

"Yeah, I just hope that man doesn't come back here at all. I don't like him." He answered.

"I don't think anybody likes him." Yukari said sarcastically and they both laugh for a while.

"I can stay with you if you'd like." Yukari said seriously when they finally stopped laughing.

"No, it's alright. I think I'll be okay by myself. I mean, I'll just be sleeping. Nobody's going to come interrogate me while I sleep." Akihiko said with a smile while Yukari stood up.

"Are you sure senpai?" The brunette girl asked and Akihiko nodded.

"Thank you for being concerned about me and I'm sorry I don't remember anything yet." Akihiko said earnestly.

"It's not your fault senpai. Just get better soon." Yukari answered. "Well, I'm going back to the dorm now. We'll come visit you again tomorrow morning. Maybe we can even sneak in Koromaru. He'll be very happy to see you." Yukari continued with a smile then winks before leaving. Akihiko couldn't help the smile on his face, he liked the idea.

* * *

><p>"Excuse me." Junpei called out to a man sitting behind the hotel's front desk, working on his computer. "Excuse me." He called out again.<p>

"I'm sorry, how can I help you sir?" The man asked, standing up.

"No worries. Do you have a computer and printer around here that I can use?" The black haired teenager asked.

"We do not have any computers or printers for public use. I'm sorry." The man replied. Junpei sighed then leans closer to the counter while looking around.

"Look, I really need to get something from my email and print it. It's a plane ticket going home and my flight's in about 5 hours from now so I really, really need that ticket. It's very important that I get on that flight." Junpei explained. The man looks around then sighs and leans closer to Junpei.

"If it's really that important, I guess you can use my computer." He told Junpei and points to the counter's entrance. "Thanks." Junpei said with a smile, clearly contented.

* * *

><p>"I'm back." Yukari said as she entered the dorm and looked around. "Good, everything's still intact." She commented but nobody seemed to be around.<p>

"Hello?" The brunette called out. When nobody answered, she goes to the kitchen but nobody was there. She opened the fridge but the Jack Frost doll wasn't there either then she walked back to the lounge.

"Anybody?" Yukari called out.

"Welcome back Yukari-san." Yukari was startled when someone behind her answered.

"I'm sorry for startling you Yukari-san." Yukari sighed in relief when she saw it was Theodore.

"It's okay. Where are the others?" The brunette asked.

"Both Koromaru-san and Ken-san are resting. They're in Ken-san's room. Minato-sama is in his room with Ryoji-san. They're both sleeping too." Theodore answered.

"They're all tired huh? How about you Theodore? Aren't you tired? Why don't you go to sleep?" Yukari suggested.

"Well it's been a busy day for all of you while I have done nothing but sleep. If you'll excuse me, I have to report to my master. I haven't returned or contacted him since yesterday." Theodore answered.

"Your master?" Yukari asked, looking at Theodore weirdly.

"Yes, my employer." Theodore explained. "I'll be back as soon as I am available again." He continued then left. Yukari just shook her head, sighed and went upstairs. It has been another long day for her and she was just exhausted.

* * *

><p>Junpei takes a deep breath as he opened the door to his hotel room, his plane ticket on hand. As he went inside, Chidori was sitting on a chair facing the door staring blankly at it. Junpei sighed and approaches the young redhead. He went down on his knees right next to Chidori then squeezes one of her hands gently.<p>

"I'm sorry Chidori. I just have to do this." The boy with the goatee said softly but the Lolita doesn't answer.

"I love you Chidori. More than you know." Junpei whispered in Chidori's ear as he stood up. As he tries to let go of Chidori's hand to fix his things, Chidori holds on to his. Junpei looks back at her.

"I've fixed all your things." She started flatly. Junpei looked at her, surprised and speechless while the look on Chidori's face softened.

"Please come back for me, Junpei. When everything is done, please come back for me." She continued with a soft, loving look on her face. Junpei couldn't hold back his emotions and hugged his girlfriend, crying.

"Thank you Chidori. I love you." He whispers as he sobbed.

"I love you too, Junpei." Chidori whispered back.

"I'll come back for you, I promise." Junpei said when he finally calmed down and let go of Chidori looking her straight in the eyes. Then he heads to his bedroom where his things have been packed just as Chidori said and takes it.

"I'll wait for you." The redhead said with a soft smile while the black haired boy smiled at her as he left the room.

* * *

><p>I'm sorry I couldn't update very often. I've been quite busy plus my laptop and harddrive gave out a few months ago, on the same day I planned to backup my files for the story and all so I had to restart this chapter.<p>

Anyway, I know I said on the preview that someone's gonna die in this chapter but I've noticed how long this one turned out and this was only the investigation part.

I promise I'll update really, really soon. I'm already working on the next chapter.

Quick Preview for next chapter - Someone will die, Junpei returns, more of Detective Takeyama and Masaharu Masaki and chaos ensues at the hospital.

Thank you so much to all those who read the story.


	10. Notice: Regarding Delayed Chapters

Hey guys,

I'm really really really sorry I haven't updated in over a year. I know, it sucks. I've been very busy but I'm still working on this story. I'm almost done with the next chapter. I promise I'll try to update this by weekend. Hope you understand. And like always, thank you so much to those who read and appreciate my story.

Thanks,

A.


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